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^HnibersiitpofiSortl)  Carolina 


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UNIVERSITY  OF  N.C.  AT  CHAPEL  HILL 


00032695708 


This  book  must  i 
be  token  from  t 
Library  building. 


Form  No.  471 


It,  •■ 


^^^^M^ 


MRS.  JAMES   SPRUNT 


In  Memoriam 

JHrs.  fames  ^pruttt 


And  a  book  of  remembrance  was  written  before 
Him  for  them  that  feared  the  Lord,  and  that  thought 
upon  His  name.  And  they  shall  be  Mine,  saith  the 
Lord  of  Hosts,  in  that  day  when  I  make  up  My 
]^yNd^r  —Malachi  3 :  16,  17. 


FOR  PRIVATE  CIRCULATION 


Copyright,  1916,  by 
James  Sprunt 


Compiled  and  edited  by 
Ellen  Hale  Wilson 


Bebtcatton 


This  lo'ving  record  of  the  de<votedy 

consecrated  life 

of 

Huola  ;j^urc{)i^0n  ^prunt 

is  affectionately  inscribed  to  our 
infant  grandson 

g^ame^  Haurence  ^prunt,  Sfunior 

Huhose  snjoeet  and  gentle  mother 

aimoret  Cameron  iBrice  ^prunt 

died  at  the  age  of  tnjoenty- four  years  ^  nvhen  she  ga'ue  him  birth. 
His  little  life,  trembling  like  a  star  betnveen  tnjoo  Worlds^  nuas 
mercifully  spared  to  brighten  and  bless  the  last  year  on 
earth  of  his  denjoted  grandmother,  nvho  brought  him  to 
our  home  and  hearts  and  la<vished  upon  him  the 
matchless  tenderness  of  a  mother'' s  lo<ve.     It  is 
my  daily  prayer  that  he  may  be  brought  up 
in  the  nurture  and  admonition  of  the  Lord, 
and  that  in  due  time  he  may  be  called 
to  the  ministry  of  the  blessed  gospel 
oj  Christ,  to  njohich  his  grand- 
mother and  I  hanje  prayer- 
fully commended  him. 

JAMES  SPRUNT 


40 


3n  Cl^ri^t 

'Death  may  hide,  but  it  cannot  divide; 
Thou   art  but  on   Christ's  other  side ; 
Thou   art  with  Christ  and  He  with  me, 
In  Christ  united  still  are  we." 


3n  ;^emoriam 

In  loving  memory  of  Luola  Murchison 
Sprunt,  wife  of  James  Sprunt,  of  Wilmington 
and  Orton,  who  departed  this  mortal  life 
February  17,  19 16,  in  the  full  assurance  of  a 
blessed  immortality. 

Of  dignified,  queenly  presence,  a  mind 
richly  endowed  with  exquisite  taste  and  sur- 
passing ability,  she  illustrated  with  unaffected 
modesty,  as  an  angel  of  the  highway  on  the 
journey  of  life,  the  virtues  and  graces  of  a 
noble  Christian  character,  by  an  unceasing 
and  untiring  devotion  to  the  things  that  are 
true,  and  honorable,  and  just,  and  lovely,  and 
of  good  report. 

Whatever  she  did  for  the  rescue  of  human 
souls  drifting  away  from  God,  for  the  con- 
version of  the  heathen  in  far-away  lands,  for 
the  help  and  countenance  of  our  devoted  mis- 
sionaries, for  the  care  and  education  of  the 
factory   children,   for  the   relief  of  helpless 


humanity  in  the  hospitals  at  home  and  beyond, 
for  the  comfort  of  the  bereaved  and  afflicted, 
for  the  lonely  stranger  in  a  strange  land,  in 
the  building  of  churches,  and  hospitals,  and 
schools,  and  habitations  for  the  poor,  in  the 
skillful  embellishment  of  her  beautiful  home, 
in  her  exquisite  handiwork,  in  the  promotion 
of  patriotic  and  social  endeavor  for  the  bet- 
terment of  our  people,  in  her  loving  loyalty 
to  her  family  and  friends,  in  her  winning 
endearment  for  children,  in  her  uncomplain- 
ing endurance  of  suffering,  in  the  divine 
majesty  of  a  mother's  love,  in  all  things  that 
were  worth  while,  she  did  with  her  whole 
heart  and  mind  and  strength,  with  never  an 
idle,  misspent  moment,  with  an  eye  single  to 
the  glory  of  God. 

"The  only  visible  link  between  this  life  and 
the  next  and  the  only  work  of  our  hands  that 
does  span  the  grave  and  follow  us  into  the 
unseen  world  beyond  is  what  we  accomplish 
in  endeavoring  to  imitate  Him  who  went 
about  doing  good.  Doing  good  is  unselfish- 
ness in  action;  it  is  work  for  others,  and  its 
field  comprehends  the  smallest  kindnesses  of 
every-day  life  as  clearly  as  the  noblest  exer- 
cise of  public  charity.  The  cup  of  cold  water 
marks  it,  as  well  as  the  church,  the  asylum,  or 
the  hospital,  or  the  college.  The  loving 
smile,  the  cheering  word,  in  this  service  may 
be  more  worthy  of  remembrance  than  all  the 
world  calls  great  outside  of  it." 


Dearly  beloved  and  deeply  lamented  by 
hundreds  of  relatives  and  friends  at  home  and 
abroad,  mourned  by  her  surviving  husband 
and  son  and  grandson  deeply  bereaved,  but 
welcomed  to  glory  by  three  devoted  daugh- 
ters who  preceded  her,  a  family  divided  be- 
tween heaven  and  earth  will,  in  God's  own 
time,  be  reunited  in  a  joyful  resurrection. 

"Seeing  the  King  in  His  beauty,  she  said: 
'Lord,  here  am  I  and  the  children  Thou 
gavest  me.'  "  "And  I  heard  a  voice  from 
heaven  saying,  Write,  Blessed  are  the  dead 
which  die  in  the  Lord  from  henceforth:  Yea, 
saith  the  Spirit,  that  they  may  rest  from  their 
labors,  and  their  works  do  follow  them." 

— James  Sprunt. 


"Father,  I  will  that  they  also,  whom  Thou  hast  given 
Me,  be  with  Me  where  I  am." 

O  Death,  why  dost  thou  touch  the  tree  be- 
neath whose  spreading  branches  weariness 
hath  rest?  Why  dost  thou  snatch  away  the 
excellent  of  the  earth,  in  whom  is  all  our 
delight?  If  thou  must  use  thy  axe,  use  it 
upon  the  trees  which  yield  no  fruit;  thou 
mightest  be  thanked  then.  But  why  wilt  thou 
fell  the  goodly  cedars  of  Lebanon?  O,  stay 
thine  axe  and  spare  the  righteous.  But  no, 
it  must  not  be;  death  smites  the  godliest  of 
our    friends;    the    most    generous,    the   most 


prayerful,  the  most  holy,  the  most  devoted 
must  die.  And  why?  It  is  Jesus'  prevailing 
prayer,  "Father,  I  will  that  they  also,  whom 
Thou  hast  given  Me,  be  with  Me  where  I 
am."  It  is  that  which  bears  them  on  eagles' 
wings  to  heaven.  Every  time  a  believer 
mounts  from  this  earth  to  Paradise  it  is  an 
answer  to  Christ's  prayer.  A  good  old 
divine  rem^arks,  "Many  times  Jesus  and  His 
people  pull  against  one  another  in  prayer. 
You  bend  your  knee  in  prayer  and  say, 
'Father,  I  will  that  Thy  saints  be  with  me 
where  /  ami' ;  Christ  says,  'Father,  I  will  that 
they  also,  whom  Thou  hast  given  Me,  be  with 
Me  where  /  am.'  "  Thus  the  disciple  is  at 
cross  purposes  with  his  Lord.  The  soul  can- 
not be  in  both  places :  the  beloved  one  cannot 
be  with  Christ  and  with  you,  too.  Now, 
which  pleader  shall  win  the  day?  If  you  had 
your  choice,  if  the  King  should  step  from  His 
throne  and  say,  "Here  are  two  supplicants 
praying  in  opposition  to  one  another;  which 
shall  be  answered?"  Oh!  I  am  sure,  though 
it  were  agony,  you  would  start  from  your  feet 
and  say,  "Jesus,  not  my  will,  but  Thine  be 
done."  You  would  give  up  your  prayer  for 
your  loved  one's  sake  if  you  could  realize  the 
thought  that  Christ  is  praying  in  the  opposite 
direction — 'Tather,  I  will  that  they  also, 
whom  Thou  hast  given  Me,  be  with  Me  where 
I  ami."  Lord,  Thou  shalt  have  them.  By 
faith  we  let  them  go.  —Spurgeon. 

8 


He  who  has  watched  the  sun  in  its  bright 
course  through  the  firmament  and  seen  it 
gradually  decline  until  it  went  down  in  daric- 
ness  beneath  the  horizon  may  turn  from  the 
contemplation  with  no  feelings  of  sorrow  or 
regret,  for  he  knows  that  the  period  of  its 
absence  is  mercifully  ordained  as  a  season  of 
necessary  repose  to  him  and  to  all,  and  that 
the  morrow  will  restore  its  beams  to  revive 
and  reanimate  all  nature.  But  if  the  last  de- 
clining ray  which  struck  upon  his  eyelids  had 
brought  to  him  the  conviction  that  he  had 
gazed  for  the  last  time  upon  the  sun  in  the 
heaven;  that  henceforward  there  was  to  be 
no  more  rising  nor  setting,  no  morning  nor 
evening,  nor  light,  nor  heat,  no  effulgent  day, 
with  all  its  glorious  beauties  and  excellencies, 
but  night  and  darkness,  unrelieved  save  by  the 
twinkling  stars,  were  to  be  the  law  of  earth 
forever — with  what  sensations  would  the  poor 
wanderer  view  that  last  setting  of  the  sun? 

With  feelings  somewhat  akin  to  those  I 
have  imagined  we  behold  the  death  of  the 
great  and  good  whom  we  love  and  reverence. 
But  now  they  were  here  with  all  the  generous 
impulses  and  excelling  virtues  that  dignify  and 
adorn  humanity  clustering  thickly  around 
them.  We  rejoiced  in  their  presence,  we 
were  better  under  their  benignant  influence, 
we  were  happy  in  their  smiles ;  we  felt  that  it 
was  day  and  looked  not  into  the  future.  They 
are  gone.     The  places  of  earth  shall  know 


them  no  more  forever.  The  mysterious  law 
which  loosens  the  silver  cord  and  breaks  the 
pitcher  at  the  fountain  penetrates  the  heart. 

— George  Davis. 


Life  changes   all   our  thoughts   of   heaven ; 
At  first  we  think  of  streets  of  gold, 
Of  gates  of  pearl  and  dazzling  light; 
Of  shining  wings  and  robes  of  white, 
And  things  all  strange  to  mortal  sight. 
But  in  the  afterward  of  years 
It  is  a  more  familiar  place, 
A  home  unhurt  by  sighs  or  tears, 
Where  waiteth  many  a  well-known  face. 
With  passing  months  it  comes  more  near. 
It  grows  more  real  day  by  day, 
Not  strange  or  cold,  but  very  dear — 
The  glad  home  land  not  far  away, 
Where  none  are  sick  or  poor  or  lone, 
The  place  where  we  will  find  our  own. 
And  as  we  think  of  all  we  knew 
Who  there  have  met  to  part  no  more, 
Our  longing  hearts  desire  home,  too. 
With  all  the  strife  and  trouble  o'er. 

— Robert  Bronvning. 


€l)e  i^ome  of  l^et  f  atfjer^ 
J^oUp  J|iU,illanc!)e£(tEr,^orti)  Carolina 

Her  passing  away  brought  sorrow  to  many 
hearts,  and  the  sense  of  bereavement  does  not 
lessen  as  the  weeks  go  by. 

In  this  home  of  her  grandparents  and  the 
boyhood  home  of  her  father  all  surroundings 

lO 


LUOLA,  IN   CHILDHOOD,  AND   HER 
YOUNGER  SISTER  JEANNIE 


suggest  cherished  memories  of  her,  and  many 
familiar  spots  recall  special  and  tender  asso- 
ciations. The  greatness  of  mind  and  heart 
that  developed  into  a  gracious  womanhood 
and  made  her  life  a  blessing  to  her  family,  her 
friends,  the  church,  and  the  world  were 
clearly  marked  in  childhood.  Her  fine  intui- 
tions, her  keen  intelligence,  her  enthusiasm, 
her  ability  to  enter  into  the  feelings  of  others, 
and  ever-ready  helpfulness  invested  her  per- 
sonality with  a  charm  as  beautiful  as  it  was 
rare.  Many  hearts  were  cheered  by  her  sym- 
pathetic interest  and  many  lives  enriched  by 
her  generous  affection.  Richly  endowed  men- 
tally, spiritually,  and  materially,  she  lavishly 
gave  her  best  to  the  world,  and  the  best  came 
back  to  her  in  the  love  and  grateful  apprecia- 
tion of  her  noble  achievements.  The  light 
that  shone  on  her  pathway  through  life  grew 
brighter  and  more  serene  to  its  gentle  close. 

She  has  passed  within  the  veil  and  is  "made 
perfect  in  holiness"  and  happiness.  To  us 
who  remain  her  life  on  earth  will  ever  be  an 
inspiration  and  a  priceless  treasure. 

— Lucy   Gillespie  Murchison. 


"Youth  and  its  thousand  dreams  were  ours." 

Youth  is  a  vision  and  a  prophecy.     The 
years  from  twelve  to  twenty  would  seem  the 

II 


golden  years,  as  to  vision.  The  foundation 
of  character  which  these  years  establish  is  the 
basis  upon  which  the  future  is  to  build.  And 
if  the  building  is  high  and  noble  it  is  good  to 
look  back  and  feel  that  the  vision  is  true  and 
the  foundation  sure. 

"Then  age  approves  of  youth 
And   death   completes   the    same." 

The  Borough  of  Brooklyn,  forming  part  of 
the  Greater  New  York  of  today,  is  a  very  dif- 
ferent place  from  the  Brooklyn  of  1871  to 
1879.  During  those  years  New  York  beck- 
oned with  alluring  hand  to  many  of  the  fore- 
mxost  m.en  of  the  South  and  seemed  to  them 
the  most  fertile  field  in  which  to  retrieve  their 
fallen  fortunes.  Brooklyn  had  many  advan- 
tages as  a  home  for  their  families.  Its  con- 
venience to  New  York,  the  family  life  it  en- 
couraged, its  nearness  to  the  seacoast,  and  the 
m.any  economical  conditions  combined  to  pro- 
vide an  ideal  place  of  residence. 

Thus  it  was  that  the  father  of  Luola 
Murchison  came  to  New  York  and,  naturally, 
after  considering  the  reasons  given,  Brooklyn 
was  selected  as  the  place  for  the  new  home. 
These  same  reasons  prevailing  with  the  father 
of  the  writer,  the  two  homes  were  established 
so  near  each  other  as  to  be  almost  within  hail, 
and  in  this  way  promoted  daily  companion- 
ship. 

12 


Looking  back  to  that  vision,  It  would  be  dif- 
ficult indeed  to  find  a  happier  girlhood  than 
ours  was,  or  a  girlhood  coming  from  dearer 
homes.  At  the  head  of  the  one  was  the  ener- 
getic, successful,  honorable  business  man,  and 
of  the  other  the  high-toned  scholar,  editor, 
publisher,  and  the  beauty,  Intelligence,  and 
Christian  virtues  of  the  mothers  in  those  two 
households  are  a  famous  heritage  to  their 
children. 

It  was  from  Brooklyn,  then,  that  Luola  was 
to  draw  her  vision,  and  on  this  vision  she 
builded  a  foundation  which  all  through  the 
years  to  come  she  could  look  back  upon  and 
thank  her  God  that  the  foundation  she  had 
laid  would  last  not  only  through  the  years  of 
her  earthly  pilgrimage,  but  into  all  eternity. 
That  she  builded  with  no  uncertain  hand;  that 
her  vision  was  broad  and  comprehending,  and 
that  a  beautiful  gentleness  was  there,  the 
pages  of  this  book  bearing  loving  apprecia- 
tion of  the  many  who  came  in  touch  with  her 
after  years  will  attest.  And  she — as  the  years 
grew  and  time  filled  her  life  with  the  keener 
joys  and  deeper  sorrows  of  womanhood — she 
looked  back  and  rejoiced  because  of  the  sweet- 
ness and  the  strength  which  she  had  gathered 
in  those  happy  girlhood  days. 

She  Is  always  present  to  me  as  on  that  day 
when  first  we  met.  A  girl  of  twelve  years, 
with  brown  hair  curling  over  her  brow,  and 
beneath  these  curls  were  wonderful,  far-seeing 

13 


eyes,  which  seemed  always  to  be  seeking  for 
truth.  Looking  Into  those  eyes,  you  felt  sure 
of  the  beautiful  soul  from  which  they  shone. 
Her  every  motion  was  graceful  and  conveyed 
an  Impression  of  the  lovely  things  In  life — 
of  music,  youth,  springtime,  and  flowers. 
Thinking  of  her  as  she  appeared  that  day, 
girlhood  Is  ours  again,  and  she  Is  speaking  her 
sweet  thoughts,  her  unselfish  plans  for  others, 
her  noble  aspirations.  Ah!  what  a  pleasure 
It  was  four  years  ago  to  write  and  tell  her 
that  she  had  fulfilled  them,  every  one. 

I  never  see  two  young  girls  whispering  their 
sweet  confidences  together  but  what  she  comes 
before  my  willing  fancy.  Never  do  I  see 
children  happy  at  their  play  but  that  her 
image  is  there.  Thus  does  she  send  abroad 
an  Influence  and  multiply  portraits  of  herself. 

Nor  was  that  girlhood  purposeless.  There 
was  work  worth  doing  and  worth  trying  to  do 
well.  Duties  were  ever  present  and  were  a 
never-ending  education  of  a  fine  sort.  They 
were  made  easy  by  happy,  simple,  and  con- 
genial recreations.  The  gifts  with  which  bv 
nature  she  was  richly  endowed  during  these 
sunny  days  by  concentration  and  persever- 
ance she  steadily  developed.  As  a  musician 
her  work  was  highly  valued,  and  her  sweet 
voice  contributed  much  to  the  happiness  of 
her  home.  Her  sentiment  for  nature  was 
genuine;  she  embellished  her  own  and  other 
homes  with    touches   of  her  art.     In    everv 


14 


variety  of  needlework  her  fingers  were  deft 
and  the  specimens  that  came  from  her  hands 
were  rare  and  beautiful.  She  enjoyed  her 
art  by  using  these  talents  largely  for  others. 
There  comes  no  remembrance  that  she  ever 
worked  for  self,  although  her  activity  was  in- 
defatigable. Rather  was  hers  a  nature  that 
gave  from  its  fullness. 

Even  in  those  early  years  her  distinguish- 
ing trait  was  the  love  she  gave  little  children. 
She  was  their  friend  and  they  knew  it.  She 
was  especially  beloved  by  the  children  in  her 
own  kinship,  but  not  only  upon  these  children 
was  her  affection  lavished,  but  it  was  freely 
given  to  those  in  other  households  with  whom 
she  came  in  contact.  May  it  not  have  been 
the  Divine  in  her  nature;  the  answer  from  her 
soul  to  the  Master's  ''Suffer  little  children  to 
come  unto  Me,"  which  in  the  last  year  of 
earthly  life  pleased  her  Heavenly  Father  to 
place  a  motherless  little  one  in  those  tender 
arms. 

In  her  last  letter  was  revived  her  loving 
recollection  of  the  pets  which  shared  our 
heartsome  young  life. 

A  very  precious  friend  of  this  girlhood  was 
Moses,  Luola's  beautiful  pony,  and  with  the 
pony  a  basket  phaeton  came,  both  gifts  from 
her  father.  The  phaeton  was  just  large 
enough  for  two,  and  there  could  hardly  have 
been  a  part  of  Brooklyn  that  did  not  welcome 
the  sight  of  Moses  and  the  two  girls  in  the 
phaeton,  for — 

15 


"The  paths  by  which  we  twain  did  go, 
Which  led  by  tracts  that  pleased  us  well ; 
Thro'  those  sweet  years  arose  and  fell 
From  flower  to  flower,  from  snow  to  snow." 

Three  weeks  before  her  death  she  writes: 
"How  happy  we  were  with  my  beautiful  pony, 
the  like  of  which  I  have  never  seen  since. 
There  will  come  a  time  when  we  shall  be  to- 
gether for  eternity,  when  the  friendship  of 
our  girlhood  days  will  mature  into  joy  ever- 
lasting." 

In  May,  1883,  she  writes  of  her  approach- 
ing marriage;  her  heart  is  overflowing  with 
love  and  admiration  for  and  confidence  in  the 
man  she  has  chosen  for  her  life's  companion. 
"With  him  near  me,  I  feel  I  can  lead  a  higher, 
better  life  than  I  ever  hoped  for." 

Girlhood  does  not  go  with  her  into  that 
life  where,  blessed  with  the  love  of  husband 
and  children,  she  grows  in  good  works. 

And  now  that  she  is  looking  back  to  the 
vision  and  beholding  the  foundation  and  see- 
ing that  it  was  good,  she  exclaims,  "Thanks 
be  to  God  which  giveth  us  the  victory  through 
our  Lord  Jesus  Christ."     Amen. 

"So,   dearest,    now   thy   brows   are   cold, 
I    see   thee   what   thou   art,   and   know 
Thy  likeness   to   the   wise  below. 
Thy   kindred   with   the   great   of   old. 

"But   there   is  more   than    I    can    see, 
And  what  I   see  I   leave  unsaid. 
Nor  speak  it,  knowing  Death  has  made 
His  darkness  beautiful  with  thee." 

^       — Ellen  Hale  fVilson. 


I 


i 


LUOLA,  AS  A  SCHOOL  GIRL 


"Flowers  of   all    hue,   and   without  thorn  the   rose." 

She  who  was  so  tenderly  loved  and  uni- 
versally admired,  Luola  Murchison  Sprunt, 
has  passed  to  the  great  beyond,  and  many 
there  are  who  mourn  for  her. 

Of  singular  grace  and  warm  sympathy,  she 
endeared  herself  to  all  who  came  in  contact 
with  her,  and  the  extent  of  her  influence  for 
good  is  well-nigh  boundless. 

She  was  endowed  with  many  talents,  con- 
spicuous among  which  was  her  artistic  ability. 
This  expressed  itself  in  many  ways,  notably  in 
the  beautiful  appointments  of  her  home  in 
Wilmington  and  Orton. 

Her  friends  remember  her  keen  enthusiasm 
for  the  rare  and  exquisite  etchings,  of  which 
she  made  a  most  interesting  collection,  and 
love  to  think  of  her  as  she  explained  the  excel- 
lent work  of  her  favorite  artists. 

Amidst  the  many  changes  of  the  years,  how 
great  is  the  pleasure  of  reviewing  happy  hours 
of  the  past.  "Yes,  tho'  thy  smile  be  lost  to 
sight,  to  memory  thou  art  dear."  How  hand- 
some and  gracious  was  Mrs.  Sprunt  that  day 
when  she  welcomed  as  her  guest  in  her  Wil- 
mington home  President  William  H.  Taft. 
The  occasion  was  a  formal  breakfast  in  honor 
of  the  President  and  a  party  of  friends.  No 
setting  for  such  a  scene  could  have  been  more 
charming.      The  vine-embowered  piazza  with 

17 


its  outlook  on  a  fair  garden,  the  graciousness 
of  the  accomplished  hostess — all  presented  a 
picture  long  to  be  remembered. 

Again,  how  dear  to  her  friends  is  the  recol- 
lection of  Mrs.  Sprunt  in  her  rose  garden,  her 
arms  full  of  the  lovely  blossoms  she  was  gath- 
ering for  her  visitors.  Among  these  memo- 
ries, first  and  foremost  must  stand  the  picture 
of  Orton,  where  the  fairy-like  touch  of  the 
lovely  owner  had  made  the  historic  old  plan- 
tation a  scene  of  unique  beauty.  How  truly 
gracious  and  sweet  she  was  to  her  guests  at 
this  most  hospitable  Southern  estate ! 

Nothing,  it  would  seem,  so  delighted  her 
loving  heart  as  giving  comfort  and  pleasure 
to  others.  She  responded  immediately  to  the 
suffering  and  needy,  whose  wants  she  so  unos- 
tentatiously relieved,  and  her  messages  of 
sympathy  for  her  friends  in  sorrow,  so  affec- 
tionate and  consoling,  gave  utterance  to 
thoughts  of  great  beauty,  reflecting  as  they 
did  the  blessed  truths  of  her  Lord  and  Master 
Jesus  Christ. 

Mrs.  Sprunt's  impulses  were  wonderfully 
kind  and  strikingly  effective,  springing  as  they 
did  from  the  warmest  and  most  generous  of 
hearts,  the  echo  of  her  own  deep  spirituality. 

She  gave  of  herself  in  the  most  enthusiastic 
manner,  whether  in  the  gift  of  a  beautiful 
bouquet  of  her  Orton  hyacinths  or  in  the  erec- 
tion of  a  hospital  for  suffering  little  children, 
for  all  time. 

i8 


Only  those  nearest  to  her  In  her  confidence 
could  have  any  idea  of  the  number  and  vari- 
ety of  her  beneficent  deeds. 

Such  a  spirit  as  that  of  Luola  M.  Sprunt 
can  never  die.  Her  life  here  will  be  an  ex- 
ample and  inspiration  for  those  who  are  left 
to  mourn  her  loss,  and  time  will  not  dim  the 
beauty  of  her  sweet,  strong  personality. 

"The  reason  firm,  the  temperate  will, 
Endurance,  foresight,  strength  and  skill ; 
A  perfect  woman,  nobly  planned. 
To  warn,  to  comfort  and  command." 

— Lucile    Wright   Murchison. 


"She  lingers  there  like   sunshine  over  the  ground. 
And  ever  I  see  her  soft  white  fingers  searching  after  the 
bud  she  found." 

We  sometimes  playfully  called  our  dear 
one  the  "Stormy  Petrel"  because  of  her  al- 
most unceasing  activity,  but  even  that  wan- 
derer upon  the  wide  ocean  finds  rest  upon  the 
heaving  bosom  of  the  sea,  and  when  her 
physical  power  waned  and  the  headache  warn- 
ing must  be  heeded,  she  ever  turned  with 
thankfulness  to  our  country  home,  fourteen 
miles  down  the  river,  which  brought  relief  and 
steadiness  to  her  overwrought  nerves. 

We  linger  at  Orton,  the  most  attractive  of 
all  the  old  colonial  estates  on  the  Cape  Fear. 
For  a  hundred  and  ninety-one  years  it  has  sur- 
vived the  vicissitudes  of  war,  pestilence,  and 

19 


famine,  and  it  still  maintains  its  reputation  of 
colonial  days  for  a  refined  and  generous  hos- 
pitality. Here,  in  the  exhilaration  of  the 
hunter,  the  restful  seclusion  of  the  angler,  the 
quiet  quest  of  the  naturalist,  the  peaceful  con- 
templation of  the  student,  is  found  surcease 
from  the  vanities  and  vexations  of  urban  life. 
For  nearly  two  centuries  it  has  been  a  haven 
of  rest  and  recreation  to  its  favored  guests. 

"Here,  like  the  hush  of  evening  calm  on  hearts  opprest, 
In  silence  falls  the  healing  balm  of  quiet  rest; 

And  softly  from  the  shadows  deep 

The  grand  oaks  sing  the  soul  to  sleep 
On  Nature's  breast." 

The  house,  or  hall,  built  by  "King"  Roger 
Moore  in  1725,  with  its  stately  white  pillars 
gleaming  in  the  sunshine  through  the  sur- 
rounding forest,  is  a  most  pleasing  vista  to  the 
passing  mariner.  The  river  view,  stretching 
for  ten  miles  southward  and  eastward,  in- 
cludes "Big  Sugar  Loaf,"  Fort  Anderson, 
Fort  Buchanan,  and  Fort  Fisher. 

We  loved  its  traditions  and  its  memories, 
for  no  sorrow  came  to  us  there.  The 
primeval  forest,  with  its  dense  undergrowth 
of  dogwood  blossoms,  which  shine  with  the 
brightness  of  the  falling  snow;  the  thickets  of 
Cherokee  roses,  which  surpass  the  most  beau- 
tiful of  other  regions;  the  brilliant  carpet  of 
wild  azaleas,  the  golden  splendor  of  the 
yellow  jasmine,  the  modest  drosera,  the  mar- 

20 


velous  Dionaea  muscipula,  and  the  trumpet 
sarracenias ;  the  river  drive  to  the  white  beach, 
from  which  are  seen  the  distant  breakers;  the 
secluded  spot  in  the  wilderness  commanding  a 
wide  view  of  an  exquisite  landscape,  where, 
safe  from  intrusion,  we  sat  upon  a  sheltered 
seat  beneath  the  giant  pines  and  heard  the 
faint  "yo  ho"  of  the  sailor  outward  bound;  a 
place  apart  for  holy  contemplation  when  the 
day  is  far  spent,  where  the  overhanging 
branches  cast  the  shadow  of  a  cross,  and 
where  later,  through  the  interlacing  foliage, 
the  star  of  hope  is  shining;  the  joyful  recep- 
tion at  the  big  house,  the  spacious  hall,  with 
its  ample  hearth  and  blazing  oak  logs ;  around 
it,  after  the  bountiful  evening  meal,  the  old 
songs  sung  and  the  old  tales  told  and  fun  and 
frolic  to  keep  dull  care  beyond  the  threshold. 

But  even  at  Orton  she  found  her  rest  and 
recreation  in  restoring  and  beautifying  the  old 
place,  which  responded  to  every  touch  of  her 
magic  hand,  because  she  was  ever  in  harmony 
with  nature  and  with  art,  and  the  old  and  the 
new  were  blended  into  a  perfect  colonial 
home. 

Her  care  of  old  St.  Philip's  Church  ruins 
on  this  plantation  arrested  its  decay  and  made 
this  venerable  pile  the  mecca  of  the  yearly  pil- 
grimage of  the  Colonial  Dames.  Contrast- 
ing its  roofless  walls  with  the  need  of  modern 
times,  she  builded  near  the  dwelling-house  a 
beautiful  chapel  of  pure  colonial  design  by 

21 


her  brother,  an  eminent  New  York  architect, 
for  the  use  of  our  guests  and  for  the  neigh- 
borhood white  people,  for  there  was  no  other 
church  for  miles  around.  It  seats  lOO  per- 
sons and  it  is  not  yet  dedicated,  but  it  will  ever 
be  known  as  "Luola's  Chapel." 

Her  last  gift  was  another  beautiful  church 
for  the  colored  people  of  Orton  and  their 
friends,  which  seats  no  persons.  This  was 
recently  filled  on  its  dedication  to  the  worship 
and  glory  of  God  by  the  celebrated  evangelist. 
Rev.  Dr.  J.  Wilbur  Chapman,  who  with  his 
party  were  guests  at  Orton.  The  scene  of 
this  beautiful  service,  which  touched  the  hearts 
of  all  present,  will  live  in  their  memory  as 
long  as  life  lasts.  In  solemmly  dedicating  the 
gift  of  one  of  His  saints  who  had  recently 
been  called  to  the  "house  not  made  with 
hands,"  the  eloquent  preacher  earnestly  ad- 
monished those  present  to  take  heed  lest  they 
defile  by  sinful  thoughts  this  sacred  building; 
and,  said  he,  "The  dedication  of  this  church 
cannot  be  complete  unless  you  also  dedicate 
yourselves  to  the  Master's  service."  Imme- 
diately, as  by  a  common  impulse,  every  colored 
person  present  came  forward  and  kneeled  in 
a  semicircle  before  the  minister  and  solemnlv 
took  the  vow  of  allegiance  to  the  King  of 
Saints.  The  gentle  spirit  of  the  giver  seemed 
to  abide  with  us  that  day. 

—J.  s. 


22 


iSecoUection^ 

"Eternal  sunshine  of  the  spotless  mind." 

Luola  Murchlson  married  my  uncle,  James 
Sprunt,  in  1883.  My  earliest  recollection  of 
her  pictures  a  very  sprightly,  cordial,  and 
sympathetic  person,  who  always  knew  what 
was  the  matter  when  anything  went  wrong, 
and  how  to  set  it  right.  Today  recalling  her 
as  I  saw  her  the  last  time,  just  a  few  weeks 
ago,  the  words  of  the  greatest  eulogy  in  our 
language  come  to  me:  "She  was  my  friend, 
faithful  and  just  to  me."  For  more  than 
twenty-five  years  her  friendship  never  for  a 
moment  faltered — never  once  lost  an  oppor- 
tunity to  perform  some  gentle  service. 

Very  precious  to  me  is  the  following  page 
in  my  childhood,  very  dear  to  me  because  I 
love  to  think  how  closely  she  was  knit  into 
the  warp  and  woof  of  our  earliest  years. 
My  brothers  and  I  were  still  quite  little  when 
our  parents  were  called  North  and  we  were 
left  with  Aunt  Luola,  who  adopted  us  and 
a  fairy  world  opened  up  before  us.  She  took 
us  to  Masonboro  Sound  and  cared  for  us  with 
a  devotion  and  tact  that  I  now  recall  as  most 
extraordinary.  I  admired  her  so  much  that 
I  felt  I  should  like  to  acquire  that  power 
which  even  as  a  child  I  felt  she  possessed. 
On  one  occasion  we  were  speaking  of  begin- 
ning things  and  throwing  them  aside  unfin- 
ished.    I  do  not  know  whether  she  intended 

23 


it  for  a  hint  or  not — my  propensity  for  dis- 
carding tiresome  tasks  was  rather  well  known 
in  the  family — at  any  rate,  she  told  me  that 
in  her  impulsiveness  she  often  used  to  throw 
a  thing  aside  to  start  something  fresh,  and  her 
mother  gathered  together  all  such  attempts 
and  quietly  put  them  in  a  drawer  and  one  day 
said  to  her,  "You  may  not  begin  anything  else 
until  you  finish  all  these  bits  of  fancy  work 
that  you  have  started."  Aunt  Luola  said  she 
wept  miuch  over  the  task,  but  she  learned  her 
lesson.  Never  again  did  she  let  any  bit  of 
work  leave  her  hands  unfinished.  That 
taught  me  also  a  lesson — never  to  abandon  a 
purpose  until  it  has  been  accomplished. 

My  aunt  possessed  a  wonderful  power.  It 
was  som.ething  more  than  personality;  it  was 
what  Emerson  alludes  to  as  a  sense  of  mass 
and  defines  as  character,  nam.ing  its  chief 
manifestation  self-sufficingness.  My  own  at- 
titude toward  her  reminds  me  again  of  Emer- 
son's eulogy,  "I  revere  her  who  is  riches;  so 
that  I  cannot  think  of  her  as  alone  or  poor  or 
exiled  or  unhappy  or  a  client,  but  a  perpetual 
patron,  benefactor,  beatified  woman."  Such 
qualities  as  furnished  her  especial  genius 
might  have  been  embodied  in  a  great  re- 
former or  a  statesman  or  a  general,  but  in  her 
they  blended  into  one  great  simple  expres- 
sion, and  with  Abou  Ben  Adhem  she  might 
have  said,  "Write  me  as  one  who  loves  his 
fellow-men." 


24 


Wealth  was  a  mere  incident.  I  believe  if 
she  had  been  a  daughter  of  toil  her  thoughts 
for  others  would  have  been  just  the  same. 
Her  ingenuity  was  amazing.  She  never 
despised  little  things  nor  failed  to  make  use 
of  every  ad\'antage  the  occasion  offered  for 
helping  rich  and  poor  alike.  Her  power  of 
discernment  was  so  great  that  when  applied 
to  a  business  problem  it  divided  unerringly 
the  false  from  the  true;  and  yet  this  same 
judgment  was  available  for  any  one  in  any 
emergency  and  took  the  very  facts  of  the  case 
and  solved  the  difficulty  in  its  own  environ- 
ment; for  her  sympathy  made  it  possible 
for  her  to  understand  the  poorest  woman  in 
her  hovel  and  yet  to  comprehend  the  most 
complex  motives  of  the  most  subtle  action. 

All  the  experiences  of  her  life  seemed  to 
contribute  to  the  strength  of  her  character. 
There  was  something  almost  heroic  in  her 
grief.  But  in  proportion  to  her  sorrow  was 
her  ability  to  sympathize  with  the  heart- 
broken. One  of  her  greatest  activities  was 
writing  words  of  comfort  to  mourning  hearts. 
In  the  sleepless  hours  of  the  night,  when  pain 
made  it  impossible  for  her  to  rest,  her 
thoughts  turned  to  the  sad  and  suffering,  and 
out  of  her  own  full  heart  she  sent  a  message 
of  cheer. 

There  never  seemed  any  emergency  too 
difficult  for  her  to  meet,  a  situation  too  deli- 
cate for  her  to  handle.     Her  tact  and  cour- 


25 


tesy  enabled  her  to  achieve  the  most  remark- 
able results.  During  the  term  of  years  when 
she  was  president  of  the  North  Carolina  So- 
ciety of  Colonial  Dames  of  America  she  pur- 
sued a  policy  which  attracted  the  attention  of 
the  foremost  national  members  and  won  for 
the  society  an  enviable  reputation.  Possess- 
ing a  very  keen  mind  and  one  capable  of  dis- 
cerning ability  in  others,  she  encouraged  all 
mental  effort  and  set  in  operation  valuable 
research  work  which  has  been  of  the  greatest 
benefit  to  the  State  at  large. 

In  conversation  she  was  most  versatile. 
One  found  intellectual  people  turning  natu- 
rally to  her,  and  her  wide  and  varied  experi- 
ence gave  an  authority  to  her  opinion  on  all 
subjects. 

Her  loyalty  to  her  family  and  her  devotion 
to  each  member  of  it  was  as  beautiful  as  it 
was  intense.  She  held  them  together  by  her 
very  love  for  them  and  her  unstinted  appre- 
ciation. 

Her  personal  pleasures  were  few,  or,  to  be 
more  exact,  she  found  her  pleasure  in  making 
others  happy.  Her  charity  was  so  broad  that 
she  found  good  in  every  one  and  realized  the 
difficulties  and  temptations  of  every  soul. 
Her  character  possessed  in  fact  a  symmetry 
that  one  could  not  fail  to  perceive  and  appre- 
ciate. Her  love  of  justice  and  sincerity  was 
as  pronounced  as  her  charity  and  generosity, 
and  to  the  day  of  her  death  she  clung  fast  to 

26 


LUOLA  MURCHISON,  AT  THE  AGE  OF  20  YEARS 


her  lifelong  habit  of  bearing  the  burdens  of 
others,  of  glorifying  God  In  her  body,  which 
was  His,  and  which  she  confidently  expected 
would  bear  the  image  of  the  heavenly  even  as 
it  had  borne  the  image  of  the  earthly. 

— Jeanie    Dalziel    tVood. 


"Fold  her,   Oh  Father!   in  Thine  arms, 

And   let  her   henceforth  be 
A  messenger  of  love  between 
Our  hearts  and  Thee." 

I  have  come  to  the  conclusion,  remember- 
ing all  I  can  of  her  remarkable  personality 
and  wonderful  life,  that  she  was,  like  my 
m.other,  one  of  those  "women  who  ministered 
to  Him."  How  different  they  were,  those 
two,  and  yet  how  alike  in  purpose.  To  each 
of  them  belongs  every  word  of  Solomon's 
inspired  description  of  the  wise  woman.  Each 
of  them,  while  she  strived  for  the  noblest 
and  gentlest  virtues  of  the  woman  of  yester- 
day, devoted  to  her  home  and  family,  con- 
servative and  domestic,  had  caught  the  far- 
thest vision  and  entered  into  the  highest  tasks 
of  the  woman  of  today,  who  is  a  gracious 
elder  sister  to  all  the  world.  Do  you  remem- 
ber how  Aunt  Luola  thought  of  that  unique 
plan  of  sending  hundreds  of  yards  of  cloth, 
with  needles  and  thread  and  patterns,  even, 
to  the    Belgian   women,    who   were   without 

27 


clothes  and  without  work,  long  before  the 
Relief  Committee  suggested  the  selfsame 
plan?  Some  one  who  came  to  Wilmington 
about  that  time  was  so  thrilled  at  the  wonder- 
ful thoughtfulness  of  her  generosity  that  she 
said,  "What  a  woman!  Every  time  I  come 
back  to  Wilmington  I  hear  of  some  great  new 
charity  of  hers."  "First  she  gave  herself." 
This  I  think  explains  all  her  giving,  her  per- 
sonal sympathy  and  appreciation  of  others' 
needs.  Then  her  appreciation  of  others'  lives 
and  character  was  most  sincere,  and  she  gave 
her  praise  with  as  ardent  a  spirit  as  she  gave 
her  help.  Her  deep  and  adoring  love  for 
my  mother  is  one  of  our  very  most  precious 
memories.  I  often  think  that  in  the  affec- 
tionate letters  she  wrote  mother,  she  was  writ- 
ing unknowingly  the  very  things  we  who  love 
them  both  feel  and  say  of  herself.  "Sweet- 
est sister,"  she  loved  to  call  mother,  which 
was  the  title  her  own  sisters  had  given  her. 

And  another  proof  of  her  great  and  gen- 
erous spirit  was  her  appreciation  of  the  serv- 
ices done  her  by  those  who  loved  her,  from 
her  own  beloved  family  to  the  humblest  serv- 
ant. You  remember  how  she  said  to  Lucy, 
the  cook  at  Orton,  during  a  time  when  things 
were  temporarily  disorganized  in  the  kitchen, 
"Oh,  Lucy,  you  are  so  good  to  me;  I  think 
you  are  a  real  Christian  to  work  away  so 
patiently  with  a  stove  no  bigger  than  a  pocket- 
handkerchief."      Poor   grateful   Lucy   could 

28 


only  assure  her  that  no  service  was  too  much 
to  render  such  a  mistress.  She  has  often  said 
that  "she  was  made  for  emergencies,"  and 
we  all  knew  her  ingenuity,  her  swift  grasp 
of  a  situation,  and  her  generalship  in  organ- 
izing and  using  her  resources.  But  the  truth 
is,  she  was  made  for  service;  no  matter  how 
difficult,  how  delicate,  how  exacting  a  task, 
she  had  the  will  and  the  spirit  to  do  it  well. 
Few  people  I  ever  knew  have  been  so  vari- 
ously and  lavishly  endowed  by  nature.  Her 
fingers  were  as  nimble  as  her  brain,  and  that 
is  to  say  much,  for  the  play  of  her  thought 
was  swift  as  the  wind  that  sweeps  over  the 
wheat.  Once  when  Laurence  was  studying 
with  me,  he  said:  "Cousin  Sue,  I  just  couldn't 
work  last  night;  mama  had  a  guest  and  I 
had  to  listen — you  know  how  mama  can 
talk."  Indeed  I  know — blessed  be  her 
tongue  forever.  How  she  m.ade  me  laugh  in 
the  midst  of  my  own  gloom,  even  when  she 
was  lying  helpless  herself  and  in  pain;  how 
she  rose  in  the  early  dawn  to  take  her  ready 
pen  and  pour  her  balm  into  some  lonely  and 
suffering  heart,  when  she  was  a  constant  suf- 
ferer herself.  Thank  God  for  the  friend- 
ship of  such  a  spirit,  for  the  prospect  of 
eternal  association  with  her  in  the  "land  that 
is  very  far  off." 

But,  even  if  we  could  speak,  all  we  feel, 
as  we  cannot  possibly,  the  sum  of  it  is  just 
that  she  "ministered  unto  Him."     Her  life 

29 


with  God  was  the  source  of  all  her  beauty. 
"It  is  the  spirit  that  quickeneth."  Forever 
and  forever  her  glorified  spirit  shall  continue 
the  work  of  love  so  graciously  begun  here. 
No  dark  grave  is  the  home  of  that  bright 
spirit.  And  thus  only  can  we  find  relief  from 
the   desolate   loneliness   and   longing   of   the 

bodily  separation.  —Susan    Eliza    Hall. 


"Friendship  above  all  ties  does  bind  the  heart." 

A  Tribute  from  One  Who  Knew  and  Loved 
Her  from  Early  Girlhood  and  to  Whom 
She  Gave  the  Friendship   of  a  Lifetime. 

Her  name  is  a  synonym  for  all  which  stands 
for  high  Ideals,  lofty  aims,  and  deep  religious 
fervor.  Faithful  to  every  duty,  her  guiding 
principle  was  "loving  and  serving  the  highest 
and  best."  Of  love  and  friendship,  and  help 
that  sprang  spontaneously  to  meet  all  needs, 
she  gave  unsparingly.  Her  warm  loving 
heart  was  ever  reaching  out  to  soften  and 
relieve  all  misery  and  suffering,  to  smooth  the 
rough  places  In  life's  pathway  and  strengthen 
and  encourage  the  sick  and  hopeless.  Her 
bright,  buoyant  spirit  touched  and  vitalized 
all  circles  In  which  she  moved.  Gifted  by 
nature  with  boundless  energy,  versatile  tal- 
ents, and  a  mind  ever  ready  to  grasp  and  con- 
trol all  conditions  and  emergencies,  obstacles 

30 


to  her  were  only  stimulants  to  greater  effort; 
but,  modest  and  self-depreciating,  she  claimed 
for  herself  no  honor  for  any  triumph  won. 
Endowed  with  artistic  tastes  and  tempera- 
ment and  a  high  appreciation  of  all  that  is 
fine  and  beautiful,  she  also  possessed  a  brain 
so  strong,  so  vigorous  and  forceful,  that  one 
instinctively  turned  to  her  for  advice  and 
guidance  along  all  the  practical  lines  of  life. 
Not  one  of  her  many  talents  was  allowed  to 
rust  for  lack  of  use.  The  seven  years  she 
was  President  of  the  North  Carolina  Society 
of  Colonial  Dames  stand  out  prominently  in 
the  history  of  the  society.  Her  marked  exec- 
utive ability  greatly  broadened  the  scope  of 
its  work  and  strengthened  its  place  in  the 
National  Society.  Can  those  of  us  who  were 
privileged  to  serve  under  her  administration 
ever  forget  her?  To  remember  her  as  a  pre- 
siding officer  is  to  recall  her  graceful  poise, 
her  natural  ease  and  dignity,  her  gracious 
courtesy  and  never-failing  kindly  tact,  a  com- 
bination rare  indeed,  which  won  for  her  the 
loyal  love  of  a  large  and  varied  organization. 
If  the  measure  of  life  is  the  well  spending 
of  it  and  not  the  length  of  years,  then  hers 
indeed  was  a  long  one;  but,  called  at  last  to 
higher  service  in  the  great  beyond, 

"Oh,  blessed  consolation  in  our  grief  to  feel 

There  is  no  death;  whatever  seems  so  is  transition; 

This  life  of  mortal  breath  is  but  a  suburb  of  a  life  Elysian 
Whose  portal  we  call  death." 

—Florence   Hill   Kidder. 

31 


Ztibntt^  from  ^a^ttst^ 

We  have  known  some  such  women  as  this 
Phoebe  of  whom  the  apostle  writes  in  Romans 
i6:  I,  2,  3.  One  such  entered  into  rest  only 
last  week,  after  weeks  of  patient  trust  in  God, 
closing  a  life  of  rare  excellence  and  full  of 
good  deeds.  She  had  done  all  from  her 
throne  in  her  home  and  the  heart  of  her  hus- 
band. From  the  home  rather  than  from  the 
church,  to  which  she  was  loyal,  her  body  was 
borne  to  its  last  earthly  resting  place.  She 
was  like  Phoebe — a  "sister"  to  all  the  family 
of  our  Father  as  related  to  His  Son,  our  Elder 
Brother.  She  was  "servant  of  the  church," 
not  ostentatiously,  but  in  ways  most  wise  and 
helpful,  to  many  individuals  and  to  the  cause 
of  Christ  in  "the  regions  beyond."  She  was 
a  "succorer  of  many"  in  unstinted  hospitalit}^ 
and  timely  help.  This  entire  city  mourns  her 
loss,  and  the  high  and  low,  the  poor  and  the 
rich  are  telling  of  the  many-sided  ministry  to 
others.  With  others  we  thank  God  for  her 
life  ministry  of  mercy  amongst  us. 

—A.  D.  McClure. 


"But  the  fruit  of  the  Spirit  is  love,  joy,   peace,  long- 
suflFering,  gentleness,  goodness,  faith." 

She  never  forgot  a  friend.  Of  all  her 
many  gracious  and  lovely  traits  I  believe  this 
was,  perhaps,  the  most  characteristic. 

There  can  be  no  greater  or  truer  virtue 
than  this,  for  "Greater  love  hath  no  one  than 

32 


this — that  one  lay  down  his  life  for  a  friend." 
She  was  always  laying  down  her  own  affairs 
and  setting  aside  her  own  plans,  forgetting 
her  own  sufferings  for  the  sake  of  others.  It 
never  seemed  as  though  she  were  conferring 
a  favor,  for  she  had  the  unusual  faculty  of 
making  the  pleasure  and  comfort  of  others 
seem  her  own. 

Every  one  of  those  delightful  visits  to 
Orton  stands  out  distinctly  In  my  memory,  but 
as  I  write  one  occasion  recalls  Itself  more 
vividly  than  the  others.  It  was  my  first  visit 
to  Wilmington  after  I  had  moved  to  Chapel 
Hill.  The  invitation  from  both  of  you 
awaited  me  on  my  arrival.  I  accepted,  of 
course;  indeed,  I  don't  think  I  ever  declined 
a  single  one  of  those  Invitations. 

I  went  to  the  w^harf  and  there  found  the 
most  bountiful  and  delicious  provisions,  put 
up  by  her  own  hand.  I  thanked  Link,  the 
butler,  and  was  about  to  say  good-bye  to  him, 
when  he  told  me  that  Mrs.  Sprunt  had  in- 
structed him  to  go  down  the  river  with  me 
and  take  good  care  of  me.  A  severe  head- 
ache had  prevented  her  from  making  the  trip, 
but  It  had  not  prevented  her  from  taking 
every  forethought  and  making  every  arrange- 
ment for  my  comfort  and  pleasure,  to  the 
smallest   detail. 

God  has  been  very  good  in  the  friends  He 
has  given  me,  and  for  the  friendship  of  your 
wonderfully  kind  and  generous  wife  I  thank 

33 


Him  from  my  heart.  I  still  have  and  shall 
always  keep  the  lovely  fur  coat  that  she 
brought  me  from  one  of  her  trips  to  New 
York. 

Have  you  ever  thought  of  the  multitude 
who  have  gone  into  the  "other  life"  without 
having  known  great  joy  and  real  friendship 
here — many  without  the  knowledge  of  the 
Saviour?  I  know  that  God  ministers  to  these 
through  just  such  ones  as  your  dear  wife,  and 
that  she  must  be  doing  a  wonderful  work  now 
for  those  who  on  earth  never  knew  such  a 
personality  as  hers.  And  how  happy  she 
must  be  in  her  work  without  the  pain  and 
limitations  of  the  "natural  body." 

I  hope  that  you  will  realize  more  and  more 
that  her  prayers  and  her  spirit  are  with  you 
and  will  be  with  you  until  the  end. 

"When   earth's   last  picture   is  painted 

And  the   tubes   are   twisted    and   dried ; 
When  the  oldest  colors  have  faded 

And  the  youngest  critic  has  died, 
We  shall   rest,  and  faith,  we  shall  need  it. 

Lie  down  for  an  aeon  or  two. 
Till   the  Master  of  all   good  workmen 

Shall  call  us  to  work  anew. 

"And  only  the  Master  shall  praise  us, 

And  only  the  Master  shall  blame; 
And  no  one   shall  work  for  money, 

And  no  one  shall  work  for  fame; 
But  each  for  the  joy  of  the  working, 

And  each  in  his  separate  star 
Shall  draw  the  thing  as  he  sees  it 

For  the  God  of  things  as  they  are." 

34 


LUOLA  MURCHISON.  A  FEW  MONTHS  BEFORE  HER  MARRIAGE 


What  I  have  said  out  of  my  heart  about 
your  dear  wife  I  feel  about  you,  for  you  were 
as  one  in  your  loving  kindness  and  generous 
friendship  to  me.  I  came  very  near  being  in 
Wilmington  this  week  on  a  mission  in  behalf 
of  Sewanee,  and  one  of  the  things  I  had 
counted  on  most  was  seeing  you  and  perhaps 
Orton. 

May  God  be  with  you  always  is  the  prayer 
of  your  devoted  friend, 

Richard  W.  Hogue. 


appreciation^ 

"For  all  the  saints  who  from  their  labors   rest, 
Who  Thee  by  faith  before  the  world  confessed, 
Thy   name,   O,  Jesus,   be   forever  blest. 
Alleluia." 

In  the  providence  of  God  a  useful  and  what 
seemed  to  be  necessary  life  has  been  cut  short 
and  the  community  in  which  she  lived  has 
lost  a  beloved  and  valuable  citizen  in  the  death 
of  Mrs.  Luola  Murchison  Sprunt. 

Her  beautiful  and  unusual  character  is  so 
deserving  of  mention  that  this  hand  of  affec- 
tion wishes  to  pay  a  slight  tribute  to  her  mem- 
ory and  to  record  some  of  the  virtues  that 
won  the  admiration  of  intimate  friends  and 
endeared  her  to  all  who  knew  her. 

Upright,  honorable,  strong  in  her  convic- 
tions of  right,  kind  of  heart,  and  ever  ready 

2S 


to  help,  she  will  be  sorely  missed  in  many  a 
household.  Always  taking  a  keen  interest  in 
all  that  concerned  those  about  her,  she  was 
quick  and  ready  to  respond  to  any  appeal  for 
aid  and  sympathy. 

It  was  in  her  home  life,  however,  that  her 
light  shone  brightest,  in  the  dispensing  of  a 
lovely,  gracious  hospitality,  which  was  gener- 
ously bestowed  upon  the  rich  and  poor  alike. 
Especially  was  this  so  at  her  beautiful  country 
home,  Orton,  where  many  a  grateful  heart 
will  recall  the  return  to  health  and  happiness 
gained  by  a  visit  to  this  delightful  place. 
There  was  no  sphere  or  circumstance  of  life 
in  which  Mrs.  Sprunt  was  placed  that  she  did 
not  fill  with  great  dignity  and  efficiency;  but 
the  beautiful  spirit  of  hospitality  was  per- 
fectly exemplified  in  her  desire  to  share  her 
blessings  with  those  who  were  near,  as  well  as 
the  "stranger  within  her  gates,"  many  of 
whom  were  strengthened  and  encouraged  for 
the  battle  of  life,  stimulated  by  this  noble 
woman  and  her  lofty  ideals. 

It  was  manifest  to  those  whose  privilege  it 
was  to  be  with  her  during  the  last  months  of 
her  illness  that  she  bore  her  suffering  with 
wonderful  patience  and  Christian  fortitude, 
always  more  thoughtful  of  those  around  her 
than  of  her  own  suffering.  We  love  to  think 
of  her  now  with  her  Saviour,  whom  she  loved 
so  loyally,  free  from  sorrow  and  pain,  sur- 
rounded by  many  of  her  loved  ones  and  yet 

36 


still  busy  in  the  service  of  her  Master,  minis- 
tering to  those  dear  ones  left  behind,  whose 
lives  will  ever  feel  her  influence. 

— Lucy  Atkinson  Murchison. 


"But,   lo!    there   breaks   a  yet   more  glorious   day, 
The    saints   triumphant   rise   in   bright   array ; 
The  King  of  Glory  passes  on  His  way. 
Alleluia." 

To  the  many  beautiful  things  that  have 
been  said  of  Luola  Murchison  Sprunt  may  I 
add  this  tribute  of  love. 

Mrs.  Sprunt  was  endowed  with  rare  gifts 
of  mind  and  body;  was  generous,  warm- 
hearted, and  brave.  To  her  friends  she  was 
loyal  and  devoted,  wise  in  counsel,  strong  of 
vision,  fearless  in  speaking  the  truth,  ever 
ready  to  share  their  joy  or  sorrow  and  giving 
them  unreservedly  of  her  influence,  power, 
and  of  herself.  As  a  leader  Mrs.  Sprunt  was 
particularly  fitted.  Instantly  grasping  a  situ- 
ation, she  infused  her  own  efiiciency  and  en- 
thusiasm into  her  co-workers,  stimulating  them 
and  opening  up  new  vistas  of  service.  Shy, 
timid  natures  caught  the  inspiration  and  gave 
her  their  loving  best.  Even  the  weak  and 
feeble  felt  there  was  still  some  work  for  them 
to  do. 

In  her  inner  life  Mrs.  Sprunt  was  deeply 
religious.  Believing  implicitly  in  prayer,  she 
lived  daily  under  the  direction  of  the  Holy 
Spirit,  with  unfaltering  trust  in  her  Master, 

37 


whom  she  delighted  to  serve.  Abhorring  in- 
action, every  faculty  of  her  heart,  mind,  and 
body  was  alert  and  busy  reaching  out  in  num- 
berless avenues  to  all  humanity  with  love, 
tenderness,  sympathy,  and  kindness,  ever 
watching  lest  an  opportunity  slip  for  righting 
some  wrong,  lifting  some  burden,  brightening 
some  life,  relieving  suffering,  influencing 
towards  higher  things,  helping  the  discour- 
aged, the  tempted,  the  weak,  the  sick,  the  sor- 
rowing with   a   word,    a    flower,   a   letter,    a 

prayer.  — Kate  W.  Fairley% 


"Now  there  are  diversities  of  gifts,  but  the  same  spirit." 

The  most  unusual  thoughtfulness  of  others 
was  the  dominant  note  of  her  life  as  I  knew 
her.  It  was  always  a  puzzle  to  discover  how 
she  could  know  so  much  of  the  needs,  desires, 
ambitions,  and  good  points  of  the  many  who 
were  the  recipients  of  her  loving  bounty. 
She  could  pick  out  gold  in  a  rough,  unlettered 
man  with  unerring  precision  and  she  never 
made  a  mistake.  In  that  large  number  of 
her  intimate  friends  who  are  today  lamenting 
her  loss  can  be  found  all  sorts  and  conditions 
of  men  of  all  colors  and  creeds.  A  black- 
smith, a  street-car  motorman,  a  street-cleaner, 
a  fallen  woman,  a  starving  clergyman,  a  doc- 
tor, a  foreign  minister — all  had  shared  in 
her  discriminating  kindness,  for  she  knew  just 
what  each  needed,  whether  it  was  a  load  of 

38 


wood  or  a  loaf  of  bread  or  a  simple  note  of 
encouragement.  In  her  latter  months,  when 
her  failing  strength  kept  her  on  her  bed,  she 
turned  to  wonderful  use  her  splendid  skill  at 
note-writing,  and  there  are  many  of  these  evi- 
dences of  her  love  that  are  now  treasured 
possession  of  the  recipients. 

When  the  need  of  a  hospital  for  suffering 
women  and  helpless  little  ones  was  mentioned 
to  her  she  immediately  with  her  larger  vision 
saw  a  chance  to  help  not  only  these  sufferers 
directly,  but  the  whole  community  indirectly. 
She  saw  that  the  greater  function  of  a  hospital 
was  as  an  educational  institution,  and  she  knew 
that  if  she  could  direct  the  efforts  of  all  in- 
terested in  the  way  of  creating  a  place  of  in- 
struction for  the  medical  profession,  the  whole 
community  would  share  the  blessing  of  a 
greater  efficiency.  She  knew,  too,  that  a 
teaching  hospital  not  only  does  more  for 
the  sufferer,  but  in  turn  the  sufferer  becomes 
a  benefit  to  the  whole  community.  She  knew 
that  her  own  case  had  proven  of  value  to 
patients  yet  unborn  because  it  had  been  studied 
in  Johns  Hopkins  Hospital  and  the  records 
carefully  preserved.  She  had  felt  the  contact 
with  Dr.  Osier's  ideals  in  medicine  enough 
to  know  that  the  patient  rather  than  being 
experimented  with  to  his  torture  or  distress 
was  being  doubly  benefited  by  the  more 
searching  investigation.  Her  weeks  in  the 
Baltimore  hospital  might  be  thought  to  have 

39 


been  wasted,  for  she  was  not  greatly  helped 
physically,  but  it  seemed  to  me  to  have  been 
the  most  fruitful  period  of  her  life,  for  she 
acquired  in  that  short  time  with  her  brilliant 
intellectual  grasp  an  idea  of  the  true  spirit 
of  healing  as  it  is  known  to  the  highest  of  the 
medical  profession,  and  she  brought  it  home 
to  us  and  became  our  most  helpful  teacher. 
She  had  learned  the  function  of  a  great  hos- 
pital and  she  had  seen  how  science  and  sym- 
pathy could  go  hand  in  hand  with  progress, 
and  that,  while  she  could  not  be  cured, 
she  was  given  the  blessed  privilege  by  her 
very  sickness  of  lifting  the  load  for  countless 
patients  yet  to  come. 

It  was  a  short  step  from  this  new  point 
of  view  to  its  application  in  her  home  town. 
As  a  result  of  her  sympathetic  appreciation 
of  the  needs  of  the  medical  profession  she 
was  instrumental  in  having  appointed  the 
first  visiting  staff  of  the  James  Walker  Me- 
morial Hospital.  This  single  movement 
would  have  justified  an  ordinary  life,  for  the 
results  of  it  can  never  be  reckoned  because 
of  the  never  ending  chain  of  good  it  is  des- 
tined to  bring  about  in  the  years  to  come. 

The  building  now  in  process  of  construc- 
tion on  the  grounds  of  the  James  Walker  Me- 
morial Hospital,  a  memorial  to  her  little 
daughter,  will  show  in  many  of  its  details 
something  of  her  wonderful  mind  that  could 
apply  its  power  even  to  hospital  architecture. 

40 


Many  of  her  suggestions  will,  no  doubt,  be 
copied  by  greater  hospitals  in  the  time  to  come, 
for  her  appreciation  of  the  needs  of  the  little 
patients  was  so  intimate  that  the  application 
to  her  was  simple,  indeed. 

As  her  physician  I  saw  her  under  every 
condition.  Her  capacity  for  uncomplaining 
suffering  was  unequaled  in  my  experience 
and  her  bravery  was  the  more  striking  be- 
cause her  Intellectual  appreciations  of  things 
generally  told  her  with  unerring  precision 
just  how  serious  each  of  her  heart  attacks 
really  was,  and  it  was  impossible  to  deceive 
her.  In  the  midst  of  it  all  she  would  inquire 
for  each  of  my  patients  who  were  seriously 
sick,  be  it  a  poor  negro  or  an  intimate  friend. 
It  was  no  uncommon  thing  after  a  visit  to 
her,  when  she  would  quiz  me  about  some 
patient's  needs,  to  find  on  my  next  visit  that 
the  ministering  angel  from  her  own  bed  of 
suffering  had  sent  a  messenger  laden  with 
delicacies  of  all  sorts,  but  the  greatest  of 
these  was  the  loving  message  accompanying  it. 

I  had  received  so  much  from  her  hands 
that  I  was  constantly  overwhelmed  by  it. 
Not  the  least  of  the  blessings  for  which  I 
have  to  thank  her  was  the  good  advice  which 
always  proved  unerring.  Whether  It  was  a 
professional  matter  or  one  of  most  personal 
nature,  her  advice  was  clear  cut  and  precise 
and  never  at  fault. 

Surely  she  being  dead  yet  speaketh. 

— Ednvard  Jenner  Wood. 
41 


"and  in  her  tongue  is  the  law  of  kindness." 

"When  I  met  Cousin  Luola  two  years  ago 
in  Paris,  I  was  privileged  to  have  a  closer 
insight  into  her  character  than  ever  before. 
She  spoke  so  frankly  and  expressed  herself 
so  sincerely,  that  I  left  her  with  a  deep  im- 
pression of  what  a  fine  woman  she  really  was. 

She  told  me  of  having  persuaded  you,  at 
a  time  when  business  was  not  exactly  flourish- 
ing, to  make  a  tremendous  sacrifice,  for  the 
Wilmington  Y.  M.  C.  A.,  when  that  excellent 
institution  was  in  need  of  help  to  further  some 
worthy  project  then  in  hand.  Her  descrip- 
tion of  you  as  a  young  man  was  an  appeal 
put  in  such  a  way  that  it  could  never  have 
fallen  on  deaf  ears. 

To  do  for  others  as  we  do  for  ourselves 
is  so  rare  a  quality  in  this  selfish  world,  that 
it  was  an  elevation  in  this  ordinary  com.mon- 
place  life  to  have  it  exemplified  in  the  simple 
and  frank  words,  as  expressed  to  me  by  Cousin 
Luola.  I  will  never  forget  her  words  of  wis- 
dom and  counsel  to  me  on  that  occasion. 
Cousin  Luola  was  one  among  thousands,  aye 
hundreds  of  thousands.  She  has  gone  but 
her  memory  lives  and  her  deeds  are  an  in- 
spiration to  others.  The  lines  composed  by 
my  Grandfather,  engraved  on  the  stone 
erected  to   Lord  Houghton: 

"Here  fond  remembrance  reared  the  sculptured  stone  to  one 
Who  looked  on  mortal  foibles  with  a  sigh  of  tenderness 
And  found  his  chief  meed  in  thoughts  of  duty  done.' ' 

42 


These  lines  more  than  any  I  can  think  of 
describe  In  appropriate  language  the  beauti- 
ful character  that  has  been  taken  from 
among  us  In  the  person  of  Cousin  Luola. 

— Dalziel  Hedderwick. 


"Death  is  a  translation  into  life." 

''Those  we  call  dead 
Are  brothers  of  an  ampler  day 
For  ever  nobler  ends." 

"All  the  gifts  that  were  in  her,  penetrated  as  they  were 
by  spiritual  significance,  told  of  immortality.  Such  a 
presence  as  hers,  erect  and  prophetic,  was  itself  a  pledge 
that  its  life  cannot  be  spilt  as  water." 

Once  In  a  far-distant  time  God's  messen- 
gers to  man  came  In  glistening  white  and,  with 
the  majesty  of  angelic  function,  delivered  to 
those  privileged  to  receive  them  the  com- 
mands of  the  great  I  Am.  Radiant  moment ! 
Marvelous  privilege !  Wonderful  experience, 
this  talking  face  to  face  with  one  of  the 
heavenly  host!  But  contact  no  more  vital 
than  Is  granted  many  now  who  live  day  by 
day  and  year  by  year  In  close  association  with 
spirits  as  truly  the  messengers  of  God  as  the 
white-wlnged  multitude.  Human  as  we,  yet 
dwelling  on  sublimated  heights;  our  compan- 
ions and  Intimates,  yet  exalted  above  the  In- 
completeness and  the  emptiness  that  m.ar  the 
fast  fleeting  days  with  most  of  us.  Such  was 
Luola  Murchlson  Sprunt.     Hers  was  a  life 

43 


sent  from  God.  If  to  any  this  seems  a  state- 
ment borrowed  too  nearly  from  the  sacred 
Word,  let  them  consider  for  a  moment  the 
fruits  of  her  life,  so  in  harmony  with  the 
requirements  of  the  sacred  Word.  Now  that 
the  Lord,  whose  she  was  and  whom  she 
served,  has  called  her  to  higher  tasks,  the 
results  of  her  labors  on  earth  are  finding  more 
fully  the  acknowledgment  she  endeavored 
while  living  to  suppress.  Here  a  letter  from 
a  factory  superintendent,  voicing  the  gratitude 
of  himself  and  his  employees  for  the  education 
and  care  of  the  factory  children;  here  a  me- 
morial service  in  China  expressing  the  deep 
sense  of  loss  in  one  whose  arm  of  usefulness 
stretched  in  power  across  the  seas  to  uplift 
and  train  the  heathen;  here  letters  from 
patriotic  societies  acknowledging  her  excep- 
tional service  in  furthering  their  aims  and  in 
administering  their  affairs;  here  letters  from 
church  and  charitable  organizations  telling  of 
the  enlargement  given  their  efforts  by  her  per- 
sonal labors  and  liberality;  here  messages 
fromx  an  innumerable  company  to  whom  she 
furnished  homes,  clothed  and  fed,  comforted 
and  gave  new  hope.  The  intimate  testimony 
of  her  friends  and  the  acknowledgments  from 
an  extended  acquaintance,  from  the  highest  to 
the  lowliest,  all  are  redolent  with  fragrant 
memories  of  her  queenly  bearing,  her  gracious 
personality,  her  deep  spiritual  discernment, 
her    marvelous    and    fruitful    service.     Her 


44 


activities  were  too  numerous  to  be  recorded, 
for  hers  was  a  life  that  "translated  truth  into 
conduct,"  and  she  constantly,  though  uncon- 
sciously, measured  her  life  by  the  service  she 
was  able  to  render  others.  Treading  this 
royal  pathway,  she  ever  traveled  heavenward 
along  the  way  her  Saviour  trod ;  and  now  that 
she  has  come  to  the  end  of  that  glorious  way 
and  the  great  white  portals  have  opened  to 
admit  her  to  the  presence  of  her  Lord,  mar- 
velous will  be  the  tasks  He  has  reserved  for 
a  spirit  so  harmoniously  related  to  heavenly 
requirements  while  on  earth,  and  so  richly 
prepared  for  more  exalted  labors  in  heaven. 
Sent  from  God  and  returned  to  God;  but  the 
memory  of  the  sweetness  and  strength  of  her 
life,  the  beauty  and  depths  of  her  character, 
the  great  scope  and  marvelous  fertility  of  her 
service  she  has  left  as  a  gift  in  perpetuity  to 
earth,  and  these  shall  bear  fruit  while  time 
shall  last.  Not  only  the  life,  but  the  labors 
and  influence  of  the  saints  are  immortal. 

— Samuel  A'Court  Ashe. 
— Rosa  Pendleton  Chiles. 


"O   ye   mountains    and    hills,   bless   ye    the    Lord." 

She  had  such  a  magnificent  capacity  for  en- 
joyment that  I  always  thought  of  her  in  con- 
nection with  those  words  of  the  late  Charles 
Kingsley,  "Nothing  but  God  can  satisfy  a 
woman."     Her  heart  was  so  large  and  her 

45 


sympathies  were  so  wide,  she  looked  as  if  she 
could  embrace  the  world,  and  I  know  that  is 
how  she  felt.  I  think  only  one  such  woman 
may  be  born  in  a  century,  and  one  of  her  many 
attributes  was  that  she  caused  herself  to  be 
appreciated  in  her  lifetime.  Her  light  was  so 
bright  that  she  could  never  pass  unobserved. 
To  me  she  was  the  axis  on  which  the  world 
revolved.  We  knew  each  other  only  by  name 
until  not  much  more  than  a  dozen  years  ago, 
but  from  the  first  moment  I  felt  at  one  with 
her.  I  never  wondered  why  or  questioned 
the  fact;  it  was  just  there.  All  that  she  did 
was  perfection  in  our  eyes.  What  a  happy 
time  we  had  together  that  month  of  August 
when  we  went  motoring  to  Inverness  and 
through  the  Pass  of  Glencoe.  She  so  loved 
the  mountains.  "Oh,  those  mountains!'' 
That  was  what  she  exclaimed  every  few  min- 
utes. So  you  remember,  or  rather,  can  you 
ever  forget? 

— Tomina  Dalziel  Jackson. 


"He   that   loveth   his  brother   abideth  in   the    light." 

Some  months  ago  a  traveling  circus  com- 
pany through  stress  of  misfortune  disbanded 
in  Wilmington,  and  one  of  its  employees,  a 
young  Spanish  woman,  a  lion-tamer  and  yet  a 
Christian,  was  left  penniless.  For  several 
months  she  lived  alone  in  a  little  tent  on 
Wrightsville  beach  and  gained  a  precarious 

46 


living  by  palmistry.  She  never  asked  for 
help  nor  for  sympathy,  even  when  the  tempest 
destroyed  the  fabric  of  her  humble  home,  but 
"the  radiance  of  a  noble  soul"  discovered  her 
sad  plight  and  brought  new  hope  into  a  dis- 
couraged heart. 

"They  were  tempted,  *  =f=  *  ^-j^gy 
wandered  about  in  sheepskins  and  goatskins, 
being  destitute,  afflicted,  in  deserts,  in  moun- 
tains,  in  dens,   and  in   caves  of  the  earth." 

From  a  circus  in  a  far-distant  State  the  lion- 
tamer  writes  of  her  friend  as  follows : 

She  was  a  ministering  angel  in  earthly 
form,  graciously  kind;  to  know  her  was  to 
revere  and  love.  I  count  myself  greatly 
blessed  in  that  I  was  permitted  for  a  brief 
space  to  enjoy  her  gentle  presence  and  feel 
the  radiance  of  her  noble  soul.  All  unworthy 
to  her  dear  memory,  I  offer  this  humble  trib- 
ute from  one  of  the  many  whom  her  true 
Christianity  benefited.  —Isola  Daniel. 


€riBute^  from  Cotonial  2Dame^ 

"Consilio  et  prudentia." 

In  the  death  of  Mrs.  James  Sprunt  this 
community  has  suffered  a  loss  the  full  extent 
of  which  will  be  revealed  more  and  more  with 
the  passing  of  years.  Not  at  once  can  there 
be  a  realization  of  what  it  means  to  be  cut  off 
from  such  a  forceful  personality.  In  her 
home,    in   her   church,   in   her   town,    in   her 

47 


State,  Mrs.  Sprunt  was  a  power.  Gifted  with 
many  accomplishments,  gracious  and  graceful 
in  manner,  a  keen,  initiative  mind,  she  was 
fitted  to  adorn  any  station  in  life.  She  had 
a  vital  energy  and  a  tenacity  of  purpose  which 
overcame  obstacles  that  might  have  daunted 
a  less  indomitable  spirit.  But  greater  than 
these  attributes  was  the  wonderful  sponta- 
neousness  of  her  generous  nature;  her  every 
impulse  was  to  help.  Only  to  mention  in  her 
hearing  a  case  of  need  or  suffering  was  to 
secure  immediate  assistance,  but  given  so  un- 
ostentatiously that  few  knew  of  her  many 
charities.  Among  her  good  deeds  stand  out 
prominently  her  work  among  the  crippled 
children  in  the  mill  village  of  Delgado  and 
the  Marion  Sprunt  Playgrounds  in  the  various 
sections  of  the  city.  Truly  the  children  may 
rise  up  and  call  her  blessed! 

Even  in  these  months  of  illness  her  ever- 
active  mind  was  devising  schemes  for  the  alle- 
viation of  suffering,  and  her  whole  heart  was 
in  the  baby  hospital  which  is  to  be  erected  as 
a  memorial  to  her  little  daughter. 

Mrs.  Sprunt  was  for  eight  years  presi- 
dent of  the  North  Carolina  Society  of  the 
Colonial  Dames  of  America,  and  at  the  time 
of  her  death  its  honorary  president.  Under 
her  wise  administration  the  scope  of  the  work 
of  the  society  developed  and  expanded,  and 
through  her  unusual  ability  she  also  made  her 
place  in  the  national  society. 

48 


During  months  of  suffering,  borne  with 
patience  and  unselfishness,  Mrs.  Sprunt's  natu- 
rally religious  nature  grew  more  intense,  her 
mind  dwelt  upon  the  eternal  verities.  A  life 
so  full  of  noble  deeds,  consecrated  to  God,  is 
its  own  memorial. 

''When  the  sun  in  all  his  state 

Illumined  the  eastern  skies, 
She  passed  through  Glory's  morning  gate 

And  walked  in  Paradise." 

— Gabrielle  de  Rosset  IVaddell. 


I  count  myself  very  fortunate  to  have  had 
the  privilege  of  friendship  with  Mrs.  James 
Sprunt. 

She  was  of  the  highest  type  of  Southern 
womanhood — gentle,  earnest,  courteous,  and 
kind. 

Steeped  in  the  history  and  tradition  of  her 
State,  she  not  only  exercised  an  intelligent  in- 
fluence over  the  Colonial  Dames  of  North 
Carolina  during  her  long  presidency,  but  she 
took  a  broad  interest  in  general  history  and 
did  much  to  increase  its  study  and  preserva- 
tion. 

As  a  hostess  she  was  unrivaled,  and  many 
of  us  remember  with  delight  the  hours  spent 
at  her  beautiful  home  in  Wilmington  and  at 
Orton  plantation. 

At  the  national  councils  of  the  Colonial 
Dames    of    America,    held    In    Washington, 

49 


D.  C,  in  1908,  1 9 10,  and  19 12,  Mrs.  Sprunt 
made  an  enviable  reputation.  She  served  on 
two  of  the  most  important  committees — the 
Committee  on  the  "Jamestown  Memorial" 
and  the  Committee  on  "Historic  Research." 
Her  exhaustive  and  valuable  report  on  "Un- 
marked Historic  Sites  in  North  Carolina' 
elicited  much  praise,  as  did  her  report  as  chair- 
man of  the  "Necrology"  Committee. 

A  staunch  supporter  of  the  church  and  ad- 
vocate of  all  movements  for  the  relief  of 
humanity,  a  warm  friend,  a  wise  counselor,  a 
devoted  wife  and  mother,  the  loss  of  her 
trustful  personality  will  long  be  felt. 

—Kate  Cabell  Cox. 


I  count  it  a  privilege  to  add  a  personal 
word  to  the  many  and  well-deserved  tributes 
which  are  being  paid  to  the  character  and  the 
noble  and  endearing  qualities  of  the  honorary 
president  of  the  North  Carolina  Society  of 
the  Colonial  Dames  of  America,  Mrs.  James 
Sprunt,  whose  loss  we  are  called  upon  to 
mourn. 

It  is  true  that  I  only  knew  her  at  the  sev- 
eral meetings  of  the  biennial  council  of  the 
national  society,  which  we  both  attended;  but 
a  few  such  meetings  were  quite  enough  for  her 
to  make  a  deep  and  lasting  impression  as  a 
woman  of  unusual  attributes,  sweet  and  gra- 
cious,gentle  and  yet  strong,  giving  of  her  best 

50 


without  measure  to  the  cause  that  appealed  to 
her  mind  and  to  her  heart. 

By  one  of  those  singular  coincidences  which 
it  is  hard  for  us  to  believe  are  due  to  chance 
alone,  the  last  time  that  she  attended  a  council 
she  prepared  and  read  the  report  of  the  com- 
mittee appointed  to  render  our  last  tribute  of 
praise  and  affection  to  those  of  our  number 
who  had  gone,  to  be  with  us  no  more  on  earth. 
I  cannot  do  better  than  to  quote  her  own 
words,  which  come  to  us  now  as  an  evidence 
of  her  own  steadfast  faith:  "The  confidence 
of  our  hope  and  calm  trust  that  those  missed 
from  our  side  have  been  given  at  last  the  or- 
der to  advance,  to  use  at  length,  'in  the  full- 
grown  energies  of  heaven,'  the  strength,  the 
experience,  and  the  power  acquired  in  the  low- 
lier earth  life." 

— Clarinda  Pendleton  Lamar. 


I^otice^  from  tl^e  ^re^^ 

{The  Morning   Star,    Wilmington,   N.    C,  February   17, 
19 16.) 

The  news  of  the  death  of  Mrs.  James 
Sprunt,  which  occurred  this  morning,  at  2:15 
o'clock,  at  her  home.  No.  400  South  Front 
street,  will  be  learned  with  profound  sorrow 
by  hundreds  of  people  in  Wilmington  and 
elsewhere.  She  had  been  ill  for  more  than  a 
year,  and  for  the  past  ten  days  her  condition 

51 


had  been  critical.  She  appeared  to  be  better 
yesterday,  however,  and  it  was  hoped  that  she 
might  recover.  However,  she  grew  worse 
last  night  and  passed  peacefully  away  early 
this  morning. 

She  was  the  daughter  of  the  late  Col.  Ken- 
neth Murchison  and  was  married  about  30 
years  ago  to  Mr.  James  Sprunt.  Surviving, 
besides  her  grief-stricken  husband,  is  one  son, 
Mr.  J.  Laurence  Sprunt ;  a  brother,  Mr.  Ken- 
neth Murchison,  of  New  York,  and  three  sis- 
ters, Mrs.  Shirley  Carter,  of  Baltimore;  Mrs. 
Ellis,  of  Atlanta,  Ga.,  and  Mrs.  Hurkamp,  of 
Fredericksburg,  Va. 

The  death  of  Mrs.  Sprunt  removed  from 
the  city  one  of  its  most  beloved  Christian 
women.  She  was  of  a  most  charitable  and 
kindly  disposition  and  will  be  sorely  missed 
by  the  many  who  were  the  recipients  of  her 
kindness. 

The  funeral  arrangements  will  be  an- 
nounced later. 


{The  Morning   Star,    JVilmington,   N.    C,   February   i8y 
19 16.)' 

Her  life  abounding  in  deeds  of  sweet  char- 
ity and  good  works  and  the  one  distinguish- 
ing trait  of  her  fine  Christian  character  being 
her  utter  disregard  of  self  in  her  beautiful 
devotion  to  others,  the  announcement  of  the 

52 


death  of  Mrs.  Luola  Mtirchlson  Sprunt,  be- 
loved wife  of  Doctor  James  Sprunt,  which 
occurred  at  her  home  in  this  city,  at  fifteen 
minutes  after  two  o'clock,  yesterday  morning, 
though  not  wholly  unexpected,  came  as  a  pro- 
found shock  to  the  community,  which  had  for 
so  many  years  been  the  beneficiary  of  the  in- 
fluence of  her  beautiful  living. 

Individually  and  in  co-operation  with  her 
distinguished  husband,  now  so  deeply  be- 
reaved, Mrs.  Sprunt  had  contributed  in  many 
ways  to  the  alleviation  of  suffering,  to  the  ad- 
vancement of  the  Christian  cause,  and  to  the 
sum  total  of  human  happiness  in  the  com- 
munity in  which  she  lived,  one  of  the  latest 
of  such  beneficences  being  the  founding  of  a 
hospital  for  children  and  mothers  in  connec- 
tion with  the  James  Walker  Memorial  Hos- 
pital in  this  city,  to  be  known  as  the  Marion 
Sprunt  Memorial,  a  great  work  that  she  had 
lived  to  see  only  started  and  in  the  contem- 
plation of  which  she  had  taken  a  deep  and 
abiding  interest.  In  many  other  ways  she 
and  Dr.  Sprunt  had  also  contributed  largely, 
in  various  charities  and  philanthropies,  to  the 
betterment  of  mankind,  especially  children,  to 
whom  both  were  ever  tenderly  devoted,  know- 
ing neither  class  nor  distinction  in  the  bestowal 
of  their  charities. 

Among  hundreds  of  callers  at  the  Sprunt 
home  yesterday,  many  little  incidents  of  the 
beauty  and  kindliness  of  her  spirit  were  re- 

53 


counted,  numerous  little  deeds  of  kindness  and 
charity  of  which  perhaps  the  world  never 
knew,  for  in  the  practice  of  her  good  works 
she  was  singularly  unostentatious.  Intima- 
tion, rather  than  appeal,  was  all  that  was  nec- 
essary in  bringing  a  ready  and  a  most  hand- 
some response  to  any  call  of  distress  or  suffer- 
ing, and  all  the  recompense  expected  was  the 
consciousness  of  duty  well  performed.  There 
are  many  who  in  this  hour  will  rise  up  and 
indeed  call  her  blessed,  as  was  so  splendidly 
expressed  by  a  friend  on  yesterday. 

Mrs.  Sprunt's  beautiful  devotion  to  her 
family  and  to  the  enjoyment  of  her  home  and 
fireside  were  also  marked,  and  one  of  the  last 
and  most  striking  manifestations  of  this  rul- 
ing passion  for  the  comfort  and  enjoyment  of 
others  was  her  personal  direction  of  a  rear- 
rangement and  refurnishing  of  the  handsome 
library  in  the  Sprunt  home,  which  was  the 
special  joy  and  pride  of  Mr.  Sprunt,  and 
where  he  spent  so  many  happy  hours  in  the 
company  of  his  books,  his  letters,  and  works 
of  art  with  which  the  library  is  enhanced  and 
adorned,  as  befitting  one  of  his  literary  tastes 
and  attainments.  While  still  confined  to  her 
room  in  the  early  stages  of  her  last  illness, 
ever  mindful  of  the  wishes  and  comfort  of 
her  husband,  she,  at  great  sacrifice,  no  doubt, 
of  personal  feeling,  drew  the  plans  for 
changes  and  conveniences  and  later  personally 
supervised  the  work  of  skilled  workmen  requi- 

54 


sitloned  to  carry  out  her  special  Ideas  and 
wishes  In  rehabilitating  this  room. 

As  stated  yesterday  morning  in  the  brief 
announcement  of  Mrs.  Sprunt's  death,  just 
before  The  Star  went  to  press,  she  had  been 
in  failing  health  for  more  than  a  year,  and 
though  the  most  eminent  specialists  had  been 
called  Into  consultation  and  she  had  spent 
some  time  in  Baltimore  and  elsewhere  under 
their  especial  care,  all  that  could  be  done 
availed  nothing  in  the  end,  when  she  passed 
quietly  and  peacefully  away,  surrounded  by 
loved  ones  and  those  who  had  ministered  so 
lovingly  to  her  for  the  long  weeks  that  she 
had  suffered. 

Hundreds  of  friends  called  at  the  home 
yesterday  to  pay  their  respects  and  to  utter 
a  word  of  sympathy  to  those  so  deeply  bowed 
down  in  grief,  while  many  telegrams  and  ex- 
pressions of  sympathy  came  from  friends  and 
relatives  out  of  the  city,  many  of  whom  will 
be  in  Wilmington  today  for  the  funeral,  which 
will  be  conducted  at  the  home,  on  South 
Front  street,  this  afternoon  at  3  130  o'clock. 
Rev.  J.  M.  Wells,  D.  D.,  pastor  of  the  First 
Presbyterian  Church,  officiating,  assisted  by 
the  Rev.  Dr.  Alexander  Sprunt,  of  Charles- 
ton, S.  C,  a  brother  of  Dr.  Sprunt,  who 
arrived  yesterday  to  be  with  his  brother  and 
other  members  of  the  family  In  their  sorrow. 
The  Interment  will  be  in  the  family  lot  in 
Oakdale  Cemetery. 

ss 


Mrs.  Sprunt  was  a  daughter  of  the  la- 
mented Colonel  Kenneth  M.  Murchison,  of 
Wilmington  and  New  York,  so  highly  es- 
teemed in  Wilmington  and  North  Carolina, 
and  she  was  married  to  Dr.  Sprunt  thirty-two 
years  ago,  their  wedded  life  having  been  one 
of  beautiful  devotion,  each  to  the  other.  Sur- 
viving her  are  her  husband  and  one  son,  Mr. 
J.  Laurence  Sprunt ;  a  little  grandson,  J.  Lau- 
rence Sprunt,  Jr.;  a  brother,  Mr.  Kenneth 
Murchison,  a  distinguished  architect  of  New 
York,  and  three  sisters,  Mrs.  Frank  Ellis,  of 
Atlanta,  Ga. ;  Mrs.  Shirley  Carter,  of  Balti- 
more, and  Mrs.  C.  H.  Hurkamp,  of  Fred- 
ericksburg, Va.  A  number  of  absent  mem- 
bers of  the  famJly  arrived  last  evening  and 
others  will  reach  here  this  morning  for  the 
funeral  services. 

Mrs.  Sprunt  was  best  loved  and  admired 
by  those  who  knew  her  most  Intimately,  and 
the  following  tribute  by  a  personal  friend  was 
handed  The  Star  yesterday  as  expressive  of 
the  feeling  of  a  great  many  who  enjoyed  her 
friendship  and  the  Influence  of  her  fine  per- 
sonality: 

A  Tribute. 

It  is  often  so  that  not  until  the  evangel  of 
better  things,  of  hope  fulfilled,  of  faith  justi- 
fied, comes  to  claim  as  its  own  the  life  accom- 
plished, do  we  realize  In  Its  fullness  the  rich- 
ness of  living.     To  get  the  most  out  of  life,  to 

56 


use  every  faculty  of  heart  and  mind  in  the 
service  of  doing  good,  is  the  highest  justifica- 
tion of  the  Christian  faith  and  the  truest  exem- 
plification of  the  Christian  ideal. 

Such  was  the  life  of  Mrs.  Luola  Murchison 
Sprunt.  The  poor  will  rise  up  and  call  her 
blessed.  —A  Friend. 


{The  Morning   Star,    Wilmington,   N.    C,   February   ig, 
1916.) 

In  the  presence  of  a  large  gathering  of  sor- 
rowing relatives  and  friends,  the  funeral  of 
Mrs.  James  Sprunt,  whose  death  occurred 
early  Thursday  morning,  was  conducted  yes- 
terday afternoon  at  3  130  o'clock  from  the  res- 
idence, No.  400  South  Front  street.  The  ser- 
vices were  conducted  by  Rev.  Dr.  J.  M.  Wells, 
pastor  of  the  First  Presbyterian  Church, 
assisted  by  Rev.  Dr.  Alexander  Sprunt,  of 
Charleston,  S.  C. ;  Rev.  Watson  Fairley,  of 
Fayetteville,  and  Rev.  Dr.  A.  D.  McClure, 
pastor  of  St.  Andrew's  Presbyterian  Church. 

There  were  many  beautiful  floral  tributes, 
including  a  large  number  from  individuals  and 
many  from  organizations  with  which  Mrs. 
Sprunt  had  been  identified  or  in  which  she  had 
been  interested.  The  remains  were  borne 
tenderly  to  Oakdale  Cemetery  and  the  inter- 
ment was  in  the  family  lot. 

The  choir  of  the  First  Presbyterian  Church 
sang    several    selections.      "Peace,     Perfect 

57 


Peace"  and  "For  All  Who  from  Their 
Labors  Rest"  were  sung  at  the  residence  and 
*'How  Firm  a  Foundation"  at  the  cemetery. 

The  pallbearers  were  as  follows :  Hon- 
orary—Mr. B.  F.  Hall,  Mr.  W.  H.  Sprunt, 
Eugene  S.  Martin,  Esq.,  Dr.  E.  J.  Wood,  Mr. 
Gilbert  P.  Kidder,  Mr.  Isaac  Murchison,  Mr. 
Clayton  Giles,  Sr.,  and  Mr.  H.  C.  McQueen. 
Active — Ccl.  Walker  Taylor,  of  Wilmington ; 
Dr.  W.  S.  Baer,  of  Baltimore,  Md. ;  Mr. 
Charles  Hurkamp,  of  Fredericksburg,  Va. ; 
Mr.  Shirley  Carter,  of  Baltimore,  Md. ;  Mr. 
Frank  Ellis,  of  Atlanta,  Ga. ;  Mr.  Kenneth 
Murchison,  of  New  York;  Mr.  J.  W.  Mur- 
chison and  Mr.  John  R.  Murchison,  of  this 
city. 

Among  the  out-of-town  friends  and  rela- 
tives here  for  the  funeral  were  the  following : 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Charles  Hurkamp,  of  Fred- 
ericksburg, Va. ;  Mr.  Kenneth  Murchison,  of 
New  York  City;  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Frank  Ellis, 
of  Atlanta,  Ga. ;  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Shirley  Carter, 
of  Baltimore,  Md. ;  Mrs.  James  Kyle,  of 
Goldsboro;  Mr.  J.  Hunter  Wood,  of  New 
York  City;  Dr.  and  Mrs.  W.  S.  Baer,  of  Bal- 
timore; Mrs.  J.  A.  Holmes,  of  Washington, 
D.  C. ;  Rev.  Dr.  Alexander  Sprunt,  of 
Charleston,  S.  C. ;  Mr.  D.  H.  Lippitt,  of 
Washington,  D.  C;  Mrs.  Price,  of  Baltimore, 
Md. ;  Mr.  Dalziel  Sprunt,  of  Davidson  Col- 
lege; Dr.  J.  G.  de  R.  Hamilton,  of  the  Uni- 
versity of  North  Carolina;  Dr.  W.  J.  Martin, 

S8 


president  of  Davidson  College;  Mr.  Isaac 
Murchlson,  Misses  Lula  Murchlson,  Kate 
Horner,  Kate  Falrley,  Mr.  Marshall  Wil- 
liams, Mr.  R.  W.  Bidgood,  Rev.  Watson 
Fairley,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Pemberton,  Mrs. 
McDIarmld,  of  Fayettevllle ;  Dr.  Thomas 
Sprunt,  of  Baltimore,  Md.;  Mr.  Brown  Mc- 
Koy,  of  Charlotte;  Capt.  Walker  Meares,  of 
Falson. 


{The  Evening  Dispatch,  Wilmington,  N.  C,  February  ly, 
19 1 6.) 

Mrs.  James  Sprunt,  who  for  more  than  a 
year  had  been  In  falling  health  and  for  the 
past  few  weeks  in  a  critical  condition,  died 
this  morning  at  2:15  o'clock,  passing  peace- 
fully into  that  existence  to  which  she  had  faith- 
fully and  confidently  looked  forward  through- 
out her  life. 

Her  death  has  caused  a  wave  of  sincere 
sorrow  in  Wilmington,  and  much  sympathy 
has  been  expressed  for  the  husband,  who  so 
tenderly  loved  her,  and  for  the  others  who 
were  near  to  her. 

The  funeral  arrangements  have  not  been 
definitely  made.  It  is  likely,  however,  that 
the  service  will  be  held  Friday  afternoon,  with 
Interment  In  Oakdale.  Rev.  Dr.  J.  M. 
Wells,  pastor  of  the  First  Presbyterian 
Church,  will  conduct  the  service. 


59 


Mrs.  Sprunt  was  known  for  her  kindliness 
and  grace,  and  for  her  devotion  to  the  cause 
of  her  Master.  Standing  like  monuments 
along  the  pathway  of  her  life  are  countless 
acts  of  charity,  and  many  there  are  among 
the  poor  who  in  her  death  have  lost  a  true 
and  valued  friend. 

Mrs.  Sprunt  was  the  daughter  of  the  late 
Col.  Kenneth  Murchison,  of  this  city,  and  was 
married  32  years  ago  to  Mr.  James  Sprunt. 
Surviving  her  are  her  husband;  a  son,  Mr. 
Laurence  Sprunt;  a  grandson,  Laurence 
Sprunt,  Jr. ;  a  brother,  Mr.  Kenneth  Mur- 
chison, of  New  York,  and  three  sisters,  Mrs. 
Ellis,  of  Atlanta,  Ga. ;  Mrs.  Shirley  Carter,  of 
Baltimore,  and  Mrs.  Hurkamp,  of  Freder- 
icksburg, Va. 

A  number  of  relatives  and  friends  from 
out  of  the  city  are  expected  to  be  here  to- 
morrow to  attend  the  funeral.  Many  tele- 
grams of  sympathy  have  been  received  today 
by  Mr.  James  Sprunt  and  other  members  of 
the  family. 


{Evening  Dispatch,  JVilmington,  N.  C.) 

Mrs.  James  Sprunt. 

(An  Appreciation.) 

When  it  was  known  this  morning  that  Mrs. 
Sprunt  was  dead,  the  question  was  heard  on 
every  lip,  "Was  there  ever  in  this  whole  city 
any  one  who  did  more  for  the  civic  good  or 

60 


whose  life  was  more  devoted  to  ministering 
to  the  sorrows  and  infirmities  of  others?" 

Every  one  who  had  ever  had  the  slightest 
dealing  with  her  remembered  now  that  he 
had  felt  during  the  contact,  no  matter  how 
brief,  the  strength  of  her  character  and  a 
sense  of  courage  imparted  to  him. 

To  the  poor  she  came  with  material  com- 
forts ;  to  the  sick  she  came  with  plans  looking 
to  their  restoration  to  health  and  strength ;  to 
her  friends  she  came  in  every  crisis,  in  every 
difficulty  of  their  lives  and  with  unfaltering 
purpose  and  untiring  devotion  shared  and 
lightened  their  burdens ;  to  her  family,  to  her 
husband,  to  her  children,  she  has  been  the 
very  center  of  life.  Her  love  seemed  almost 
inspired  and  indeed  it  had  its  well-spring  in 
the  eternal  God  Himself,  to  Whose  care  she 
was  continually  confiding  her  dear  ones,  and 
to  Whom  so  many  were  given  for  the  ever- 
lasting keeping. 

Mrs.  Sprunt  had  been  a  semi-invalid  for 
more  than  a  year,  and  to  those  who  were  near 
her  it  seemed  as  though  she  realized  the  time 
was  short  and  spent  every  minute  doing  some- 
thing for  some  one  in  need  of  material  or 
spiritual  things  or  else  in  planning  now  a  hos- 
pital, now  a  school,  now  a  church — always 
something  for  the  amelioration  of  suffering  or 
the  uplift  of  humanity. 

One  felt,  however,  that  Mrs.  Sprunt  with- 
drew herself  from  all  publicity.     She  was  re- 

6i 


served  in  disposition  and  countless  instances 
of  kindness  were  of  a  secret  nature  and  held 
sacred  by  her.  She  so  often  expressed  her 
human  weakness,  while  at  the  same  time  re- 
joicing in  her  privilege  of  service;  indeed  this 
feeling  of  hers  seems  aptly  expressed  in  a 
stanza  of  Tennyson's  "Human  Cry"  : 

"We   feel   we   are   nothing — for 

All  is  Thou  and  in  Thee ; 
We    feel    we    are    something — that 

Also  has  come  from  Thee; 
We  know  we  are   nothing — but 

Thou  will  help  us  to  be. 
Hallowed  be  Thy  name — 
Hallelujah!" 


"They  shall  abundantly  utter  the  memory  of  thy  great 
goodness." 

Winter  Park,  February  29,  19 16. 
Dr.  James  Sprunt,  Wilmington,  N.  C. 

Dear  Doctor  Sprunt:  The  elders  and 
deacons  of  the  Winter  Park  Presbyterian 
Church  met  this  evening  for  the  consideration 
of  several  matters  relating  to  the  work  of  our 
church,  and  naturally  we  gave  much  thought 
to  the  new  building  which  you  have  provided 
for  us.  We  feel  that  the  good  impulses 
which  prompted  you  to  make  this  splendid 
gift  to  us  should  find  a  ready  response  on  the 

62 


part  of  our  congregation,  and  we  anticipate  a 
good  and  useful  career  for  our  church.  We 
value  your  interest  in  us  and  your  example  of 
devoted  Christian  service.  While  we  shall 
bear  in  mind  the  memory  of  Mrs.  Hall,  to 
whose  sweet  Christian  character  the  church 
stands  as  a  monument,  we  shall  also  always 
hold  you,  the  donor,  in  grateful  remembrance. 
May  the  Lord  bless  you  with  all  spiritual 
blessings  in  Christ  Jesus  our  Lord ! 

We  were  speaking  tonight  of  your  great 
bereavement.  The  Lord  has  made  you  to 
pass  through  deep  waters,  but  we  know  His 
sustaining  hand  will  not  fail  you  and  that  His 
peace  will  not  depart  from  you.  We  realize 
how  pleasant  it  would  have  been  for  you  to 
have  had  Mrs.  Sprunt  to  be  present  with  you 
at  the  dedication  services.  But  we  believe  she 
will  share  the  pleasure  with  you  from  her 
vantage  ground  of  light. 

Our  best  wishes  and  most  affectionate  inter- 
est will  always  be  with  you,  dear  Doctor 
Sprunt. 

Sincerely  your  friends, 

R.  T.  Sinclair, 
G.  W.  Shephard, 
C.  M.  Robinson, 

L.  D.  Latta,  Deacons, 

G.  C.  McIntire, 

Earl  W.  Jones, 

Elders. 
Andrew  J.  Howell,  Pastor, 

63 


First  Presbyterian  Church,  Wilmington,  N.  C. 

March  6,  1916. 
James  Sprunt,  LL.  D., 

Wilmington,  N.  C. 

Dear  Brother  :  The  members  of  the  ses- 
sion have  had  you  on  their  hearts  and  the 
dedication  of  the  Winter  Park  Memorial 
Church — a  daughter  of  this  church — affords 
another  occasion  to  tell  you  of  our  apprecia- 
tion of  your  and  your  sainted  wife's  service, 
not  only  in  the  personal  work  of  consecrated 
lives,  but  in  the  princely  gifts  to  the  cause  of 
our  Lord.  They  are  enshrined  in  the  hearts 
of  our  people  here  and  in  far-away  China. 
Many  of  them  doubtless  will  never  be  known 
until  revealed  at  the  last  day,  when  the  Book 
of  Life  is  opened. 

The  session  orders  that  this  feeble  expres- 
sion of  our  approbation  be  written  in  the 
church's  book  of  minutes  and  a  signed  copy 
be  transmitted  to  you. 

Faithfully  your  friends, 

J.  A.  Springer.  John  M.  Wells. 

Will  Cumming.  C.  H.  Robinson. 

A.  M.  Hall.  B.  F.  Hall. 

J.  G.  Murphy.  P.  Pearsall. 

C.  W.  Worth.  R.  A.  Brand. 

Walker  Taylor.  H.  C.  McQueen. 


64 


Mr.  James  Sprunt,  Wilmington. 

Dear  Friend  :  The  officers  and  congrega- 
tion of  the  Chesnut  Street  Presbyterian 
Church  extend  to  you,  in  your  bereavement, 
tenderest  sympathy. 

"My  grace  is  sufficient  for  thee." 

David  Bryant, 
John  McRae, 
Louis  Belden, 
W.  H.  Bradley, 
J.  E.  Taylor, 
G.  D.  Hargrave, 

Deacons. 
James  D.  Dry, 
Aaron  Kellogg, 
J.  A.  Hargrave, 
C.  A.  King, 
J.  A.  Murray, 

Elders. 


Wilmington,  N.  C,  Feb.  23,  191 6. 

Whereas,  Mrs.  James  Sprunt  has  attained 
unto  the  full  measure  of  her  earthly  labors, 
through  her  mission  of  service,  her  works  of 
love  and  charity,  and  has  through  the  provi- 
dence of  God  been  removed  from  the  midst 
of  the  citizens  of  Wilmington  and  called  into 
her  eternal  reward: 

Be  it  therefore  resolved,  That  we  pause  to 
pay  an  humble  tribute  to  her  Christian  devo- 

65 


tion  and  her  whole-soul  endeavor  to  help  men 
and  women,  irrespective  of  creed  and  condi- 
tion. 

Be  it  further  resolved,  That  we  express  to 
the  bereaved  husband  and  other  members  of 
the  family  our  deep  and  sincere  sympathy,  and 
that  a  copy  of  this  resolution  be  spread  upon 
our  Daily  Journal  and  that  a  copy  be  also  sent 
to  the  bereaved  family. 

Done  on  the  behalf  of  the  colored  minis- 
terium  of  the  city  of  Wilmington,  N.  C. 

J.  Francis  Lee, 

Secretary. 


"The   King's   daughter   is    all    glorious   within." 

Mrs.  James  Sprunt. 
Entered  into  Rest  February  ij,  igi6. 

It  is  with  a  deep  sense  of  loss  and  profound 
sorrow  that  the  ministering  circle  of  the 
King's  Daughters  records  the  death  of  Luola 
Murchison  Sprunt. 

In  her  death  we  mourn  a  valued  and  a  faith- 
ful member,  for  in  all  her  walks  of  life  she 
was  a  true  King's  Daughter.  Her  life 
abounded  in  thoughtful  kindness  and  no  char- 
ity appealed  to  her  in  vain. 

In  large-heartedness,  hospitality,  and  loy- 
alty to  all  things  worthy,  her  life  will  stand  as 
an  example  of  truest  womanhood.     What  her 

66 


hand  found  to  do,  she  did  it  with  all  her 
might,  and  in  speaking  of  her  we  can  lovingly 
utter  the  grand  words  of  Solomon :  "Give  her 
of  the  fruit  of  her  hands;  let  her  own  works 
praise  her  in  the  gates." 

In  the  closer  personal  relations  of  life  as 
wife,  mother,  sister,  and  kinswoman,  her  life 
left  nothing  to  be  desired;  as  a  friend,  she  was 
an  able  counselor,  and  those  who  knew  and 
loved  her  best  feel  that  her  life  was  a  bene- 
diction. 

"Weep  not  that  her  toil  is  over, 
Weep  not  that  her  race  is  run; 
God  grant  that  we  rest  as  calmly 
When  our  work,  like  hers,  is  done." 

Therefore,  be  it  resolved.  That  a  page  in 
the  minute  book  be  inscribed  to  her  memory 
and  a  copy  of  this  resolution  be  sent  to  the 
bereaved  family. 

Sue  McQueen. 
Fanny  M.   Curtis. 
E.  Williams. 
Wilmington.  N.  C. 


Young  Women's  Christian  Association. 

Wilmington,  N.  C,  March  i,  191 6. 

Whereas  our  God  has  taken  to  Himself 
the  spirit  of  Luola  Murchison  Sprunt,  the  be- 
loved wife  of  Dr.  James  Sprunt;  and 

67 


Whereas  Mrs.  Sprunt  was  a  promoter  and 
liberal  supporter  of  every  movement  for  good ; 
and 

Whereas  Mrs.  Sprunt  was  a  member  of 
the  South  Atlantic  Field  Committee  of  the 
Young  Women's  Christian  Association  and  a 
life  member  of  this  association,  in  which  she 
was  deeply  interested:  Therefore  be  it  re- 
solved by  this  board  of  directors : 

First.  That  we  tender  to  her  husband  and 
son  our  sympathy  and  our  offer  to  do  any- 
thing in  our  power  to  make  her  memory  pre- 
cious,  as  it  deserves  to  be. 

Second.  That  we  record  in  our  minutes  the 
statement  that  the  life  of  Mrs.  Sprunt  and  her 
labors  were  fruitful  in  kindness  and  benefi- 
cence to  all  whom  she  could  reach ;  and, 

Third.  That  we  cherish  her  memory  and 
desire  to  have  a  part  in  her  spirit  and  disposi- 
tion to  help  others. 

Fourth.  That  a  copy  of  these  resolutions 
be  sent  to  her  family,  and  that  the  secretary  be 
instructed  to  inscribe  these  resolutions  in  the 
minute  book  of  our  association. 

Mrs.  a.  D.  McClure. 

Miss  Anne  P.  Kidder. 
Mrs.  H.  Louis  Vollers. 


68 


"For  tho'  from  out  our  bourne  of  time  and  place 

The  flood  may  bear  me  far, 
I  hope  to  see  my  Pilot  face  to  face 

When  I  have  crossed  the  bar," 

Board  of  Commissioners  of  Navigation  and 
Pilotage  for  Cape  Fear  River  and  Bars. 

Wilmington,  N.  C. 

Having  learned  with  deep  regret  and  pro- 
found sympathy  of  the  death  of  Mrs.  Luola 
Murchison  Sprunt,  wife  of  our  Honorable 
Dr.  James  Sprunt,  a  special  meeting  of  the 
Board  of  Commissioners  of  Navigation  and 
Pilotage  was  held  on  this  seventeenth  day  of 
February,  nineteen  hundred  and  sixteen,  and 
the  following  action  taken : 

Whereas  God  in  His  infinite  wisdom  has 
seen  fit  to  take  to  Himself  Mrs.  Luola 
Murchison  Sprunt:   Be  it  resolved: 

First.  That  the  Board  of  Commissioners 
of  Navigation  and  Pilotage  feels  that  the  en- 
tire community  has  suffered  a  personal  loss. 
Hundreds  of  homes,  from  the  lowliest  to  the 
highest,  will  remember  her  in  some  work  of 
kindness,  some  word  of  comfort  and  encour- 
agement. Her  sympathy  for  every  one  in 
distress  was  manifested  wherever  there  was 
the  slightest  opportunity  for  her  to  express  it, 
and  she  never  neglected  an  occasion  to  say  a 
word  of  consolation  and  Christian  cheer. 

Second.  That  the  Board  of  Commissioners 

69 


of  Navigation  and  Pilotage  shares  in  a  large 
degree  the  bereavement,  not  only  because  of 
its  deep  appreciation  for  the  beautiful  charac- 
ter of  Mrs.  Sprunt,  but  for  the  great  esteem 
of  its  chairman,  Dr.  James  Sprunt,  whose 
personality  has  always  deeply  impressed  the 
board. 

Third.  That  these  resolutions  be  engrossed 
upon  our  records  and  a  copy  be  sent  to  Dr, 
Sprunt. 

John  W.  Harper, 

V  ice-Chairman. 
H.  G.  Smallbones, 
Wm.  St.  George. 
T.  F.  Wood. 
E.  D.  Williams, 

Harbor  Master. 
Jno.  T.  Rankin,  Clerk. 


"Virtutes  majorum  filiae  conservant." 

The  North  Carolina  Society  of  the  Colonial 
Dames  of  America  records  with  deep  sorrow 
the  death  of  Luola  Murchison  Sprunt. 

Whereas  the  North  Carolina  Society  of 
the  Colonial  Dames  of  America  recognizes 
that  in  the  death  of  Mrs.  James  Sprunt  it  has 
lost  a  member  whose  strong  personality  and 
keen  judgment  marked  her  as  a  power  in  the 
society,  and  whose  eight  years  of  administra- 

70 


tion  as  president  were  conspicuous  for  achieve- 
ments, of  which  the  society  is  justly  proud: 

Therefore  be  it  resolved : 

1.  That  Mrs.  Sprunt's  administration  was 
constructive,  embracing  a  large  scope  of  work, 
the  trend  of  which  was  unified  by  her  great 
aim — to  do  honor  to  the  virtues  of  colonial 
forefathers,  and  to  encourage  in  all  who  come 
under  the  influence  of  the  society  a  true 
patriotism,  built  on  a  knowledge  of  the  self- 
sacrifice  and  heroism  of  those  men  of  the  colo- 
nies who  laid  the  foundation  of  this  great 
nation. 

Notable  among  her  services  to  the  society 
were  the  establishing  at  the  University  of 
North  Carolina  of  two  yearly  prizes  for  essays 
on  colonial  subjects,  thus  stimulating  the  inter- 
est of  the  young  manhood  of  the  State  in  the 
virtues  and  exploits  of  the  founders  of  their 
Commonwealth;  the  marking  of  historic  spots 
throughout  the  State  with  granite  boulders; 
the  much-needed  revision  of  the  society  reg- 
ister, and  her  faithful  guardianship  of  St. 
Philip's  Church  and  graveyard. 

Her  ability  was  not  confined  to  the  activities 
of  her  State  society,  for  she  served  with  dis- 
tinction on  important  committees  of  the  na- 
tional society. 

2.  That  as  presiding  officer  the  resource- 
fulness with  which  Mrs.  Sprunt  met  and  dis- 
posed of  many  vexed  questions,  her  graceful 

71 


dignity  and  gentle  courtesy  will  ever  be  re- 
membered. 

Seldom  has  it  ever  been  the  pleasure  and 
privilege  of  any  society  to  enjoy  such  beautiful 
hospitality  as  was  annually  extended  to  the 
North  Carolina  Society  of  the  Colonial  Dames 
of  America  by  this,  its  beloved  president. 

Along  all  lines  she  lived  her  life  intensely, 
not  for  herself,  but  for  others,  for — 

"Knowledge  through  suffering  entereth, 
And  life  is  perfected  through  death." 

3.  That  a  copy  of  these  resolutions  be 
spread  upon  the  minutes  of  the  society,  a  copy 
sent  to  the  national  society  of  the  Colonial 
Dames  of  America,  and  a  copy  sent  to  her 
family. 

Mary  Fairfax  Gouverneur, 
Frances  Latham  Harriss, 
Florence  Hill  Kidder,  Jr., 

Committee. 


The  Wake  County  Committee  of  the  North 
Carolina  Society  of  Colonial  Dames  of  Amer- 
ica having  heard  of  the  death  of  Mrs.  James 
Sprunt,  of  Wilmington,  N.  C,  by  a  rising 
vote  pass  the  following  resolutions : 

The  North  Carolina  Society  of  Colonial 
Dames  have  lost  a  true  and  loyal  member, 
whose  life  has  been  an  inspiration  to  all  who 

72 


knew  her.  Her  untiring  efforts  when  presi- 
dent, in  which  she  was  unsparing  of  herself 
and  her  time,  and  from  her  own  resources 
placed  memorials  to  the  honor  and  memory 
of  those  deeds  of  our  colonial  forebears  which 
reflected  credit  on  our  State. 

Her  rare  personal  charm  and  graciousness 
of  manner  endeared  her  to  all.  Her  hospi- 
tality, not  only  to  our  own  members,  but  to 
legions  of  friends,  was  noted  throughout  our 
State  and  elsewhere.  Her  home  life  was  per- 
fect. She  was  a  devoted  and  earnest  chris- 
tian, a  woman  whom  it  was  a  privilege  to  have 
known,  one  whose  place  can  never  be  filled, 
for  there  was  but  one  Luola  Murchison 
Sprunt.  This  society  extends  its  deepest  sym- 
pathy to  the  bereaved  husband,  son,  and 
grandson. 

Therefore  it  is  ordered  that  these  resolu- 
tions be  entered  on  our  minutes  and  a  copy 
sent  to  Mr.  James  Sprunt  and  to  the  North 
Carolina  Society  of  Colonial  Dames  at  Wil- 
mington, N.  C. 

Augusta  Webb  Ford  Andrews. 
Jane  Evans  Elliot  McNeill. 
Emily  Benbury  Haywood. 


73 


North  Carolina  Society  of  the  ColonialvDames 
of  America  in  Wayne  County. 

Inasmuch  as  God  has  seen  fit  to  take  away 
one  of  our  most  beloved  members,  Luola 
Murchison  Sprunt,  the  Wayne  County  Com- 
mittee extends  their  heartfelt  sympathy. 

As  one  of  our  members  who  was  always 
willing  and  ready  to  answer  to  every  call,  she 
will  be  greatly  missed. 

Barbara  Isler  Kyle, 

Secretary. 


The  Forsyth  County  Committee  of  the 
North  Carolina  Society  of  Colonial  Dames  of 
America  desires  to  express  to  Mr.  James 
Sprunt  and  family  heartfelt  sympathy  in  their 
recent  great  bereavement. 


Wilmington,  N.  C,  Feb.  24,  19 16. 

The  North  Carolina  Society  of  Colonial 
Dames  of  America  express  their  sorrow  for 
the  loss  of  one  who  has  been  their  efficient 
leader  for  many  years.  Of  her  time  and 
strength  she  gave  freely  to  others,  and  was 
ever  a  "cheerful  giver,"  such  as  God  loves. 

Very  sincerely  yours, 

Jane  Iredell  Williams, 

Chairman. 

74 


LUOLA  MURCHISOX    SPRUXT 

President  of  the  North  Carolina  Society  of 
Colonial  Dames  of  America,  1906-1912 


{Excerpt  from  the  "Report  of  the  Committee  on  Memo- 
rials," Made  i.j  the  Annual  Meeting  of  the  Society  of 
Colonial  Dames,  Held  in  May,  igi6.) 

"A  little  while"  and  again  we  were  called 
to  suffer  another  great  loss,  for  Mrs.  James 
Sprunt  finished  her  earthly  pilgrimage  and  en- 
tered rest  eternal !  For  eight  years  she  was 
president  of  the  North  Carolina  Society  of 
Colonial  Dames  of  America,  and  later  hon- 
orary president.  Our  hearts  were  wrung  with 
sorrow,  for  had  we  not  all  admired  her  splen- 
did achievements  in  the  society,  her  constant 
thought  and  work  for  its  best  interests,  and 
her  ambition  to  have  the  North  Carolina  So- 
ciety of  Colonial  Dames  take  the  place  in  the 
world  that  she  felt  was  its  due?  Had  we  not 
all  enjoyed  her  wonderful  hospitality,  being 
made  to  feel  that  we  were  granting  her  a 
favor  rather  than  having  it  bestowed  upon 
us?  Ever  courteous  and  gracious,  going 
smoothly  along  in  her  splendid  works,  hurting 
no  one  by  words  hastily  spoken  or  unkind 
deed.  We  planned,  perhaps,  better  than  we 
knew  when  we  requested  her  to  fill  the  office 
of  president,  as  all  of  her  good  work  proved 
through  the  years  of  active  service.  One  part 
of  the  work  of  the  society  was  ever  very  close 
to  her  heart,  and  the  love  and  care  she  has 
bestowed  on  old  St.  Philip's  has  made  others 
realize  what  a  grand  old  historical  spot  is  the 
ground  occupied  by  the  church  and  its'  grave- 
yard.    With   a   heart   full   of   sympathy,   no 

75 


doubt  she  has  stood  many  a  time  by  those 
ancient  graves  and  thought  of  the  beautiful 
services  held  in  those  old  church  walls,  in 
which  the  same  people  "at  rest"  now  for  more 
than  a  century,  participated,  praying  from  the 
depths  of  their  hearts  and  singing  the  old-time 
hymns,  as  "How  Firm  a  Foundation,  ye  saints 
of  the  Lord,  is  laid  for  your  faith  in  His 
excellent  Word,"  until  the  very  woods  around 
echoed  with  those  prayers  and  melodies,  which 
were  being  wafted  on  gentle  breezes  to  the 
great  white  throne.  Her  own  "faith  in  His 
excellent  Word"  carried  her  through  much 
suffering  and  great  weariness  and  she  never 
yielded  to  bodily  suffering  to  the  exclusion  of 
constant  thought  of  others.  Nor  did  her  in- 
terest in  this  society  ever  wane.  Perhaps  one 
of  the  last  times  she  ever  used  a  pen  was  to 
sign,  with  satisfaction  to  herself,  an  applica- 
tion blank  for  a  new  member. 


J^elping  €f)ilDren  to  i^appine^^ 

"And  with  the  morn  those   angel  faces   smile, 
Which  I  have  loved  long  since  and  lost  awhile." 

The  Marion  Sprunt  Playgrounds. 

Bearing  the  name  of  their  dearly  loved  and 
beautiful  daughter,  these  playgrounds,  four  or 
five  in  number,  established  by  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Sprunt  in  various  parts  of  Wilmington,  have 

76 


brought  pleasure  and  happiness  to  numberless 
little  ones.  They  gave  Mrs.  Sprunt  much  sat- 
isfaction, and  she  was  always  active  in  promot- 
ing and  extending  their  good  influence.  In 
this  work  she  felt  in  touch  with  the  lovely 
child  whom  God  had  taken  unto  Him.self,  but 
who  was  ever  present  in  the  mother's  heart. 

"A  mother  is   a  mother  still, 
The  holiest  thing  alive." 

It  is  safe  to  say  that  no  work  in  which  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Sprunt  have  co-operated  has  been 
more  valuable  for  lasting  good. 


"And  whoso  shall   receive  one  such  little  child  in  My 
name  receiveth  Me." 

The  Delgado  Kindergarten  School. 

At  the  Delgado  Cotton  Mills,  which  are 
located  near  Wilmington,  N.  C,  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Sprunt  established  the  Delgado  Kinder- 
garten School.  They  erected  a  building  suit- 
able for  the  needs  of  some  fifty  children  below 
the  age  of  public  schools.  The  children  are 
furnished  with  a  substantial  meal  every  day 
while  their  parents  are  at  work  in  the  fac- 
tories. This  undertaking  is  carefully  looked 
after  by  two  excellent  teachers  in  combination 
with  other  competent  persons.  It  has  greatly 
benefited  the  Delgado  settlement  and  has  ele- 
vated the  character  of  the  people.     A  play- 

77 


ground  for  the  children  adds  greatly  to  this 
beautiful  mission,  and  Mrs.  Sprunt  received 
much  satisfaction  in  directing  this  pleasure  for 
the  little  ones.  The  following  letter,  received 
by  Mr.  Sprunt  from  the  president  of  the  Del- 
gado  Mills,  Is  a  gratifying  expression  as  to 
the  work  accomplished  by  the  school  and  play- 
ground : 

"I  wish  to  express  my  sympathy  in  your 
great  loss  of  your  noble,  good  wife;  also  that 
of  all  our  people  here  at  Delgado.  They  feel 
that  they  have  lost  a  friend  who  had  a  feeling 
of  sympathy  for  them  In  all  their  efforts,  and 
I  want  to  express  this  to  you  for  them.  I 
know  that  you  can  see  the  good  that  you  both 
have  done  for  all  of  these  people,  and  espe- 
cially the  little  ones,  whose  lives  are  being 
made  happier  and  guided  aright.  The  oppor- 
tunity of  early  training  In  right  living  and 
righteousness  Is  an  immeasurable  gift.  For 
the  many  kindnesses  and  Interest  you  and 
Mrs.  Sprunt  have  given  them  they  and  I  have 
grateful  hearts. 

Yours  most  sincerely, 

E.  C.  Holt/' 


Immanuel  Presbyterian  Church. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Sprunt  were  greatly  inter- 
ested in  the  progress  of  Immanuel  Presby- 
terian Church,  in  the  southern  part  of  Wil- 
mington.    They    contributed    a    number    of 

78 


gifts  In  property  and  buildings.  The  school 
connected  with  this  church  has  become  one  of 
the  largest  in  the  city,  and  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Sprunt  gave  their  hearty  sympathy  to  its 
growth  and  development.  Mrs.  Sprunt's  spe- 
cial work  here  was  the  playground  for  the 
children.  It  is  called  the  Marlon  Sprunt 
Playground,  and  was  the  first  in  the  city  of 
Wilmington. 

"Proclaim  to  every  people,  tongue,  and  nation 

That   God,  in   Whom  they   live   and  move,    is  love: 

Give  of  thy  sons  to  bear  the  message  glorious; 
Give  of  thy  wealth  to  speed  them  on  their  way; 

Pour  out  thy  soul  for  them  in  prayer  victorious; 
And  all  thou  spendest  Jesus  will  repay." 

The  Kiangyin  Station, 

From  far-off  China  comes  the  solace  of  be- 
lieving prayer  and  the  assurance  that  those 
whom  she  had  led  into  paths  ending  in  heaven 
honored  and  held  onto  her  still.  At  this  mis- 
sion Mr.  and  Mrs.  Sprunt  had  founded  and 
sustained  schools  for  instruction  in  practical 
studies  and  contributed  to  a  hospital  for  the 
suffering,  at  an  outlay  of  many  thousands  of 
dollars.  The  staff,  consisting  of  a  dozen 
teachers  from  her  own  Southern  people,  a 
score  of  native  teachers  and  a  multitude  of 
children  joined  in  the  memorial  services,  held 
the  Sunday  following  her  death. 

79 


Southern  Presbyterian  Mission, 
Kiangyin,  China. 

Feb.  1 6,  191 6. 

I  wish  you  knew  what  a  wave  of  sympathy 
and  prayer  was  stirred  in  all  of  our  hearts  by 
your  cable  message  four  days  ago.  From  the 
hour  we  received  it  there  has  been  constant 
remembrance  of  Mrs.  Sprunt  and  yourself. 
At  noon  every  day  the  whole  station  meets  for 
prayer,  and  at  that  time  you  are  lovingly  held 
up  to  God  and  in  our  private  prayers  regu- 
larly. The  cablegram  reached  us  on  Satur- 
day and  all  of  us  were  touched  deeply  that 
you  should  have  thought  to  reach  out  to  us, 
half  around  the  globe,  to  bring  us,  too,  within 
the  circle  of  prayer  that  we  know  is  going  up 
from  the  host  that  love  you  both.  On  Sun- 
day morning  at  church  Mr.  Moffett  told  the 
congregation  of  your  message  asking  for 
prayer;  that  it  had  brought  the  ends  of  the 
earth  close  together,  of  your  faith  in  prayer, 
and  that  you  wanted  the  prayers  of  your 
Chinese  fellow-believers.  He  then  called 
upon  a  deacon  and  an  elder  to  lead  in  a  peti- 
tion for  Mrs.  Sprunt  and  yourself.  The 
elder  is  a  college  graduate  and  principal  of  the 
James  Sprunt  Academy.  He  thanked  God 
that,  though  we  were  so  far  distant  and  could 
not  show  our  hearts  to  you  nor  do  anything 
for  you,  yet  we  were  close  together  in  prayer. 
He    asked    for    God's    blessing    upon    Mrs. 

80 


Sprunt's  physicians,  nurses,  and  all  who  are 
with  her,  and  finally  that  deep  peace  might  be 
given  to  you  both — as  he  put  it,  "the  fullness 
of  the  peace  of  God"  might  fill  your  hearts. 
And  now  I  may  say  that  this  is  the  keynote  of 
all  our  prayers.  We  do  not  know  whether  it 
has  pleased  God  to  spare  Mrs.  Sprunt  for 
further  loving  service,  but  we  pray  that  it  may 
be  so,  and  we  trust  that  through  the  many 
prayers  going  up  for  you  that  this  may  be  a 
time  of  rich  blessing  for  you  both.  We  are 
remembering  you  specially  at  this  time  and 
with  deep  sympathy,  but  you  are  not  forgotten 
at  any  time.  Your  cablegram  has  been  a 
blessing  to  us  all,  and  I  wish  you  could  see  how 
much  comfort  it  has  given  us  that  we  could 
flash  back  our  sympathy. 

Yours  affectionately, 

George  C.  Worth. 


Southern  Presbyterian  Mission, 
Kiangyin,  China. 

Feb.  i8,  1916. 

We  are  planning  a  memorial  service  for 
Sunday  morning.  Of  this  you  will  hear  more 
in  detail  later.  We  feel  that  it  will  be  a  real 
blessing  to  our  Chinese,  not  only  because  it 
will  bring  before  them  afresh  the  beautiful  life 
of  your  dear  one,  but  also  because  it  will  be  a 
good  opportunity  to  show  them  how  we  still 

81 


honor,  love,  and  possess  our  departed.  They 
feel  because  our  doctrine  forbids  worship  of 
the  dead  that  they  are  forgotten  and  unhon- 
ored. 

Our  special  prayer  for  you  is  that  you  may 
be  so  conscious  of  spiritual  fellowship  with 
your  beloved  wife  that  you  may  feel  in  a  true 
sense  you  still  have  her.  We  rejoice  that  hers 
is  already  the  rest  that  remaineth  for  you  and 
us.         Your  friend  sincerely, 

Ella  Ward  Allison. 


Presbyterian  Church  in  U.  S. 
North  Kiangsu  Mission,  Tsing  Kiang  Pu. 

Feb.  i8,  1916. 
To  Mr.  James  Sprunt: 

In  thinking  of  her  I  think  of  the  many  who 
would  say  of  her:   "Blessed  are  the  dead  who 
die  In  the  Lord,  that  they  may  rest  from  their 
labors,  and  their  works  do  follow  them." 
Yours  most  affectionately, 

Nell  Sprunt. 


Southern  Presbyterian  Mission, 
Kiangyin,  China. 

February  19,  191 6. 
How  wonderful  It  must  be  for  dear  Mrs. 
Sprunt   to  be    freed   from   all   suffering  and 

82 


weakness  and  to  rejoice  with  all  her  marvelous 
capacity  for  joy  in  the  eternal  bliss  of  the 
Father's  home!  Surely  our  dear  departed 
ones  are  not  far  away  and  certainly  we  have 
not  lost  them;  they  are  perhaps  more  truly 
ours  than  ever  before.  Could  dear  Mrs. 
Sprunt  speak  to  you  now,  what  a  wonderful, 
wonderful  story  she  would  have  to  tell  and 
what  words  of  comfort  she  would  speak! 
Her  memory  is  most  fragrant  in  Kiangyin, 
and  you  and  she  mean  so  much  to  the  people 
here  that  we  felt  we  must  have  a  memorial 
service ;  it  will  be  held  in  the  church  tomorrow 
(Sunday)  morning,  and  we  are  praying  that 
it  may  be  a  time  of  great  spiritual  upbuilding 
for  the  Kiangyin  Christians. 

Most  sincerely, 

Ella  D.  Little. 


Kiangyin,  China, 

February  22,  19 16. 

^'Whether    we    live    or    die,    we    are    the 
Lord's." 

"When  He  shall  appear  we  shall  be  like 
Him,  for  we  shall  see  Him  as  He  is." 
With  deepest  sympathy. 
Very  sincerely  yours, 

Rida  Jourolmon. 

83 


Southern  Presbyterian  Mission, 
Kiangyin,  China. 

Feb.  20,  1916. 

You  have  been  much  on  our  hearts  and  in 
our  prayers  since  word  first  came  of  Mrs. 
Sprunt's  illness.  We  could  only  ask  that  His 
will  be  done,  and  though  we  feel  deeply  with 
you  in  this  the  great  sorrow  of  your  life,  we 
know  that  you,  too,  accept  His  will  as  from 
Him  in  love.  There  has  been  constant 
prayer  on  the  part  of  the  Chinese  friends  for 
you  both  for  some  days  past.  They  have 
never  seen  you  face  to  face,  but  the  bond  of 
sympathy  and  gratitude  is  none  the  less  real, 
and  your  names  are  often  on  their  lips. 

An  old  Christian  mother  said  to  me  some 
while  ago,  when  I  was  comforting  her  over  the 
loss  of  a  son  who  was  her  main  dependence, 
''He  never  plucks  the  fruit  before  it  is  ripe." 
She  was  a  poor,  ignorant  old  soul  in  most 
things,  but  what  a  wealth  of  comfort  the  Mas- 
ter had  given  her  In  that  thought  that  her 
loved  one  was  ripe  for  the  joy  of  His  pres- 
ence! Some  of  us  have  yet  to  be  ripened 
more  while  we  serve  here,  but  with  what  joy 
our  loved  ones  who  have  gone  before  will 
await  and  welcome  our  coming ! 

We  well  know  that  you  have  taken  comfort 
of  Him  who  shares  our  every  sorrow,  but  we 
want  you  to  know  that  we  sorrow  with  you 
and  bear  you  daily  to  the  throne  of  grace,  that 
the  light  of  His  presence  with  you  may  lighten 

84 


each  day's  burden  and  bring  the  joy  of  a  fel- 
lowship which,  in  His  own  time,  may  ripen 
into  the  "abundant  entrance." 

With  sincerest  love  and  sympathy  from 
Your  co-workers  in  His  service, 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Lacy  S.  Moffett. 


A    Special   Service    in    Lo'ving    Memory    of   Mrs.    Ltiola 
Murchison  Sprunt,  at  Kiangyin,  China,  Feb.  20,  igi6. 

Invocation Lacy  L.  Little 

Hymn— Asleep  in  Jesus,  Blessed  Sleep.  .The  Congregation 
Scripture— ist  Thess.  4:13-18,  Rev.  22:1-5 

Elder  Tsang  Ts-yong 

Prayer Lacy  I.  Moffett 

Address— Her  Life Geo.  C.  Worth 

Hymn — Give  Me  the  Wings  of  Faith 

Choir  from  the  Girls'  School 
Address— What  She  Has  Done  for  Our  Schools 

Andrew  Allison 
Address — Lessons  to  be  Learned  from  Her  Life 

Elder  Tse  Yong-K'ang 

Hymn— Take   Comfort,    Christian The  Congregation 

Prayer Elder   Loh   Ping-yong 

Benediction Lacy  L  Moffett 


TsiNG  KiANG  Pu,  China, 

Feb.  21,  191 6. 
I  can't  help  living  over  my  days  at  home 
and  recalling  the  memories  of  your  and  Aunt 
Luola's  loving,  unfailing,  thoughtful  ministry 
to  mother  and  us  all. 

As  always,  your  loving  niece, 

Jessie  Hall. 

85 


Southern  Presbyterian  Mission, 
Kiangyin,  China. 

February    22,   19 16. 

She  has  suffered  much.  How  sweet  the 
rest  of  heaven !  I  am  sure  our  merciful  God 
is  helping  you  to  be  glad  because  of  her  per- 
fect bliss,  and  He  will  help  you,  too,  to  look 
forward  to  the  glad  reunion  in  His  good  time. 
We  are  praying  that  heavenly  comfort  and 
peace  may  be  yours  as  the  lonely  days  go  by. 

A  very  helpful  memorial  service  was  held 
in  our  East  Gate  Church  Sunday  morning. 
Beautiful  tributes  were  paid  to  the  memory  of 
our  dear  friend,  who  is  not  dead,  but  "alive 
for  evermore."  I  enclose  you  a  copy  of  the 
order   of  services. 

"The  Lord  be  with  thee." 

Affectionately  your  friend. 

Lacy  L.  Little. 


Kiangyin  Hospital, 
Southern  Presbyterian  Mission. 

February  22,  191 6. 
On  Sunday  the  morning  service  at  church 
was  a  memorial  of  Mrs.  Sprunt.  It  was  a 
solemn  service  and  very  impressive,  for  all  the 
congregation  felt  that  a  great  friend  had  been 
called  away  and  another  devoted  friend  was 
left  deeply  bereaved.  I  do  wish  you  could 
have  heard  all  the  words  of  respect  and  honor 

86 


and  affection  that  were  spoken.  I  will  leave 
that  for  Mr.  Allison,  but  I  just  want  to  tell 
you  how  tenderly  we  are  all  bearing  you  and 
Laurence  up  before  the  One  who  alone  can 
give  you  rest  of  soul  and  fill  the  vacant  place 
in  your  hearts. 

Your  affectionate, 

Geo.  C.  Worth. 


Southern  Presbyterian  Mission, 
Kiangyin,  China. 

Translation  of  Letter  from  the  Kiangyin 
Church. 

To   the  Honorable  James  Sprunt,  most  re- 
spectful greetings : 

We  have  long  heard  of  the  wideness  of 
your  sympathy — not  making  distinction  be- 
tween one  country  and  another — and  of  your 
desire  to  be  a  servant  of  all.  Looking  to  God 
for  grace,  your  heart  goes  out  in  great  tender- 
ness towards  countless  multitudes  who  depend 
upon  you.  If  the  Spirit  of  Jesus  had  not  been 
in  your  heart,  how  could  you  have  built  up  our 
James  Sprunt  Academy  and  Luola  Murchison 
Sprunt  Academy?  It  is  easy  to  be  seen 
that  we  lean  upon  the  strength  of  your  arm. 
Having  obtained  these  great  benefits  from 
you,  how  can  we  forget  you  for  one  day? 

Having  heard  that  our  merciful  God  had 
called  Mrs.  Sprunt  to  the  heavenly  home,  our 

87 


pastor,  Mr.  Little,  at  once  called  a  meeting  of 
the  congregation  in  the  church  to  hold  a  me- 
morial service.  We — the  whole  body  of 
church  members — wish,  in  this  feeble  way, 
to  express  to  you  our  hearts'  sympathy  and  to 
call  your  attention  to  certain  passages  from 
God's  Word,  which  we  hope  will  be  a  means 
of  consolation  to  you.  Please  see:  ist 
Thess.  4 :  13-14 :  "But  we  would  not  have  you 
ignorant,  brethren,  concerning  them  that  fall 
asleep ;  that  ye  sorrow  not,  even  as  the  rest, 
which  have  no  hope.  For  if  we  believe  that 
Jesus  died  and  rose  again,  even  them  also  that 
are  fallen  asleep  in  Jesus  will  God  bring  with 
Him."  Revelation  14:  13:  "And  I  heard  a 
voice  fromi  heaven  saying  unto  me.  Write, 
Blessed  are  the  dead  which  die  in  the  Lord 
from  henceforth:  Yea,  saith  the  Spirit,  that 
they  may  rest  from  their  labors;  and  their 
works  do  follow  them."  Isaiah  49:13: 
"Sing,  O  heavens;  and  be  joyful,  O  earth;  and 
break  forth  into  singing,  O  mountains :  for  the 
Lord  hath  comforted  His  people,  and  will 
have  compassion  upon  His  afflicted."  ist 
Peter  4:13:  "But  insomuch  as  ye  are  partak- 
ers of  Christ's  sufferings,  rejoice;  that  at  the 
revelation  of  His  glory  also  ye  may  rejoice 
with  exceeding  joy." 

We   respectfully   present   these    few   lines, 
trusting  that  the  peace  of  Christ  may  be  yours. 

The  Congregation  of  the  East 
Gate  Church,  Kiangyin,  China. 

88 


KiANGYiN,  China,  Feb.  22,  19 16. 

Your  dear  wife  will  be  missed  by  a  very 
wide  circle  of  friends  and  relatives,  and  no 
one  can  take  her  place.  I  am  so  glad  that  our 
school  girls  here  learned  to  know  and  love  her 
through  her  picture  and  gifts  and  messages. 
We  are  hoping  that  the  letters  from  the  girls 
reached  her  before  she  was  too  ill  to  enjoy 
them;  but  if  not  she  knows  all  about  it  now, 
and  I  trust  the  letters  have  been  a  comfort  to 
you.  With  assurances  of  love  and  prayers. 
Yours  affectionately, 

Emma  C.  Worth. 


PEACE,  PERFECT  PEACE. 

Peace,  perfect  peace,  in  this  dark  world  of  sin? 
The  blood  of  Jesus  whispers  peace  within. 

Peace,  perfect  peace,  by  thronging  duties  pressed? 
To  do  the  will  of  Jesus,  this  is  rest. 

Peace,  perfect  peace,  with  sorrows  surging  round? 
On  Jesus'  bosom  naught  but  calm  is  found. 

Peace,  perfect  peace,  with  loved  ones  far  away? 
In  Jesus'  keeping  we  are  safe  and  they. 

Peace,  perfect  peace,  our  future  all  unknown? 
Jesus  we  know,  and  He  is  on  the  throne. 

Peace,  perfect  peace,  death  shadowing  us  and  ours? 
Jesus  has  vanquished  death  and  all   its  powers. 

It  is  enough:  earth's  struggles  soon  shall  cease, 
And  Jesus  call   us  to  heaven's  perfect  peace. 

89 


€xtract^  from 
%ttttx$  to  ^u  3Fame^  ^prunt 

From  the  many  appreciative  letters  of  sym- 
pathy only  those  expressions  which  speak 
directly  of  Mrs.  Sprunt  have  been  selected. 

The  White  House, 
Washington,  D.  C,  Feb.  i8,  191 6. 

It  was  with  the  deepest  sorrow  and  most 
genuine  and  heartfelt  sympathy  that  I  learned 
of  the  death  of  Mrs.  Sprunt.  My  heart  goes 
out  to  you  in  this  bereavement.  I  hope  that 
you  may  be  sustained  by  the  only  sources  that 
avail  in  such  circumstances. 

With  warmest  regard, 

Cordially  and  sincerely  yours, 

WooDRow  Wilson. 


Baltimore,  Md.,  Feb.  23,  191 6. 

I  desire  to  offer  my  sincere  condolence  in 
the  sad  loss  you  have  just  sustained  by  the 
death  of  your  beloved  wife,  the  account  of 
whose  funeral  I  have  read  in  the  Wilmington 
Star. 

Very  faithfully  yours, 

J.  Card.  Gibbons. 

90 


Baltimore,  Md.,  Feb.  i8,  1916. 

I  had  learned,  as  had  all  who  had  come  to 
know  your  wife,  the  unusual  beauty  and  love- 
liness of  her  character.  The  memories  of  a 
life  so  beautiful  as  hers  will  be  supporting  and 
inspiring.  It  has  been  good  to  know  her,  and 
it  will  be  something  to  watch  the  development 
of  a  beautiful  inheritance  in  the  little  life 
which  is  to  perpetuate  it  to  future  generations. 
Your  sincere  friend, 

W.  S.  Thayer. 


Legation  of  the  U.  S.  of  America. 
San  Jos%  Costa  Rica, 

March  12,  19 16. 

I  knew  her  as  a  happy  child,  and  later  as 
a    young    woman    of    strong    character    and 
many  graces  and  accomplishments. 
Faithfully  your  friend, 

E.  J.  Hale. 


Chapel  Hill,  N.  C,  Feb.  19,  1916. 

Having  gone  through  the  bitter  waters,  I 
can  most   feelingly  sympathize  with  you   in 
your  recent  bereavement. 
Cordially  yours, 

Kemp  P.  Battle. 

91 


Supreme  Court. 
Raleigh,  N.  C,  Feb.  21,  1916. 

I  have  just  learned  of  your  great  bereave- 
ment. I  know  quite  well  how  devoted  you 
were  to  each  other ;  how  bitter  the  sorrow  and 
poignant  the  grief  must  be  when  the  tie  that 
has  so  long  bound  you  together  in  loving  com- 
panionship was  severed. 

With  my  cordial  and  best  wishes, 
Yours  sincerely, 

Platt  D.  Walker. 


Chapel  Hill,  N.  C,  Feb.  25,  1916. 

The  greatest  of  your  wife's  gifts  to  others 
was  the  loving  gift  of  self,  and  this  she  gave 
unstintingly  and  unsparingly,  even  to  the  in- 
jury of  health  and  strength.  We  could  see 
this  when  we  visited  your  home,  and  we  loved 
her  for  it.  There  is  nothing  greater  or  more 
lovely. 

Your  friend, 

Francis  P.  Venable. 


Chapel  Hill,  N.  C,  Feb.  18,  1916. 
No  words  can  tell  you  of  my  grief  and 
sympathy.      May  this  note  assure  you  of  the 
constancy  of  my  thoughts  and  prayers  for  you. 
Affectionately, 

J.  G.  de  Roulhac  Hamilton. 

92 


Chapel  Hill,  N.  C,  Feb.  19,  1916. 

May  I  express  to  you  my  very  genuine  and 
profound  feeling  for  you  at  this  moment, 
when  one  of  the  greatest  blows  that  fate  holds 
in  reserve  has  fallen. 

Your  sincere  friend, 

Archibald  Henderson. 


Chapel  Hill,  N.  C,  Feb.  20,  19 16. 
It   was   a   great    shock   to   hear    of    Mrs. 
Sprunt's  death.      She  was  very  kind  to  me, 
and  my  memories  of  her  will  always  be  cher- 
ished. 

Sincerely, 

Robert  C.  Davis. 


University  of  Virginia. 

February  29,  191 6. 

I  send  you  my  love  and  deep  sympathy  In 
your  great  sorrow.  You  have  been  In  my 
mind  and  heart  constantly  and  tenderly  these 
days  past.  We  poor  mortals  can  only  stand 
by  in  such  moments,  suffer  with  our  friends, 
and  support  their  courage,  if  happily  we  can. 
All  this  I  do,  my  friend,  with  a  full  heart. 
May  the  good  God  comfort  and  sustain  you. 

Faithfully  yours, 

Edwin  M.  Alderman. 

93 


University  of  Virginia. 

February  21,  191 6. 

Having  known  Mrs.  Sprunt,  I  know  also 
your  sense  of  loss.  But  may  the  years  bring 
such  an  increased  realization  of  your  heritage 
of  memory  and  association  that  the  darkness 
may  be  touched  with  growing  light  and  the 
temporary  loss  transmitted  into  permanent 
gain. 

Sincerely  yours, 

C.  Alphonso  Smith. 


WoosTER,  Ohio,  Feb.  17,  19 16. 

She  is  with  God  and  God  is  with  you. 
These  are  the  unshakable  convictions  that 
will  bring  you  the  deepest  peace. 
Very  affectionately  yours, 

J.  Campbell  White. 


College  of  V^illiam  and  Mary. 
Williamsburg,  Va.,  Feb.  19,  191 6. 

There  are  many  outside  of  your  intim.ate 
circle    of    friends    whose    hearts    have    been 
touched  and  whose  prayers  have  been  moved 
for  you  in  these  dark  hours. 
Sincerely  yours, 

James  S.  Wilson. 

94 


College  of  William  and  Mary. 
Williamsburg,  Va.,  March  4,  1916. 

I  cannot  refrain  from  expressing  to  you  my 
heartfelt  sympathy.  We  are  not  as  those 
without  hope,  for  we  feel  that  this  is  only 
another  link  in  the  chain  that  binds  us  to  that 
world  where  there  is  no  suffering,  and  that 
her  departure  is  but  a  translation  to  the  realm 
of  everlasting  glory. 

I  remain, 

Sincerely, 

John  C.  Calhoun. 


Hampden-SIdney  College. 
Hampden-Sidney,  Va.,  Feb.  — ,  19 16. 

I  know  well  what  a  void  her  passing  has 
made  in  your  life,  and  that  the  home  over 
which  she  presided  with  so  much  grace  and 
charm,  and  where  she  dispensed  a  hospitality 
so  bountiful  and  delightful,  seems  altogether 
broken  and  desolate. 

The  great  company  of  those  who  experi- 
enced her  ministries  of  mercy  unite  with  you 
in  deep  grief  over  her  departure,  or  are  wait- 
ing to  welcome  her  entrance  Into  the  mansions 
above. 

Faithfully  yours, 

H.  Tucker  Graham. 


95 


Agnes  Scott  College,  Decatur,  Georgia. 

I  have  just  read  In  an  Atlanta  paper  a 
notice  of  your  wife's  death.  The  prolonga- 
tion of  life  to  her  could  only  have  meant  the 
prolongation  of  suffering.  The  change  to 
her  has  been  supremely  blessed. 
Sincerely  yours, 

F.  H.  Gaines. 


Yorktown  Historical  Society  of  the  United 
States. 

Gloucester,  Va.,  Feb.  19,  191 6. 

I  noticed  in  the  "Times-Dispatch'^  that 
your  dear  wife  had  passed  away,  and  you 
have  my  deepest  sympathy  in  your  bereave- 
ment. You  know  whom  you  have  believed 
and  His  rod  is  not  one  of  anger  but  of  love, 
and  His  grace  is  sufficient. 
Very  sincerely, 

W.  H.  Groves. 


Wilmington,  N.  C,  Feb.  — ,  19 16. 

Her  beautiful  life  has  been  such  a  help  and 
inspiration  to  so  many,  and  her  name  shall 
live  always. 

Affectionately, 

May  Beverly  French. 

96 


Wilmington,  N.  C,  Feb.  17,  19 16. 

The  profoundest  consolation  to  you  at  this 
time  will  be  the  sweet  memories  of  long  asso- 
ciation with  an  accomplished  and  noble- 
hearted  woman,  whose  life  and  character  leave 
behind  the  beautiful  example  of  a  Christian 
life.  Sincerely, 

Iredell  Meares. 


Wilmington,  N.  C,  Feb.  17,  19 16. 

For  many  years  I  have  seen  her  ability  to 
make  the  world  around  her  so  beautiful  by 
the  touch  of  her  magic  fingers. 
Sincerely, 

Mary  Calder  Atkinson. 


Wilmington,  N.  C,  Feb.  17,  19 16. 

It  always  seemed  to  me  that  she  typified  a 
beautiful  combination  of  gracious  dignity  and 
ability. 

Most  sincerely  yours, 

Mary  Fairfax  Gouverneur. 


Wilmington,  N.  C,  Feb.  17,  19 16. 

Mrs.  Sprunt  was  very  kind  to  my  father. 
May  her  soul  rest  in  peace ! 

With  sympathy,  sincerely, 

James  Owen  Reilly. 

97 


Wilmington,  N.  C,  Feb.  17,  1916. 

With  profound  sorrow  I  heard  this  morn- 
ing of  the  passing  of  your  noble  wife.  But 
for  her  it  means  freedom  from  suffering  and 
a  crown  of  glory  for  the  good  deeds  she  be- 
stowed upon  others  during  her  life. 

Your  friend, 

Rose  Barry  Smith. 


Wilmington,  N.  C,  Feb.  17,  191 6. 
I  extend  to  you  and  your  bereaved  family 
my  deepest  sympathy  in  the  passing  away  of 
Mrs.  Sprunt.  Of  this  community  I  am  one 
who  has  occasion  to  feel  a  pang  of  sorrow. 
It  was  just  at  this  season  of  the  year  in  1903, 
when  I  had  come  here  from  Washington, 
D.  C,  to  recuperate  from  a  severe  sickness, 
that  Mrs.  Sprunt  driving  by  the  house  in  her 
phaeton  noticed  me  sitting  on  the  porch  of 
my  sister,  Mrs.  E.  D.  Sloan.  She  must  have 
observed  my  emaciated  condition  and  I  had 
been  impressed  with  her  modest  bearing  and 
unconscious  beauty.  A  few  moments  later  I 
was  made  aware  of  the  identity  of  this  most 
excellent  lady  in  a  beautiful  manner  by  receiv- 
ing from  her  a  bouquet  of  the  prettiest  and 
sweetest  roses  I  ever  saw  or  expect  to  see. 
I  was  overwhelmed  at  this  manifestation  of 
gentle  kindness,  but  it  did  me  good  and  I  com- 
menced to  feel  better  immediately. 

98 


I  cite  this  as  only  one  of  a  thousand  such 
kindly  acts  to  others  Illustrative  of  the  Chris- 
tian character  of  this  noble  lady. 
Very  truly  yours, 

Paul  D.  Satchwell. 


Wilmington,  N.  C,  Feb.  19,  191 6. 
Because  Mrs.  Sprunt's  life  here  was  so  full 
of  goodness  and  love,  we  know  that  God  hath 
prepared  glorious  rewards  for  her  In  the 
heavenly  home,  and  that  you  have  lost  her 
"but  for  awhile." 

Sincerely  yours, 

Leonora  Cantwell. 


Wilmington,  N.  C,  Feb.  19,  19 16. 

1  shall  cherish  always  the  deeds  of  kindness 

which  were  given  so  freely  by  Mrs.  Sprunt  to 

my  father  and  the  moments  of  happiness  she 

gave  him  by  her  unselfish  thought  and  care. 

Grace  Craig  Branch. 


Wilmington,  N.  C,  Feb.  21,  19 16. 
It  must  comfort  you  to  feel  in  how  many 
beautiful  ways  your  wife  has  left  her  Impress 
upon  the  community.     The  Influence  that  she 
exerted  for  good  will  live  forever. 
Most  sincerely, 

Eliza  W.  Meares. 

99 


Wilmington,  N.  C,  Feb.  21,  1916. 

As  president  of  our  "Colonial  Society," 
which  she  so  well  represented,  she  bore  her- 
self with  that  gracious  dignity  and  sweet 
authority  that  characterizes  the  gentle  born 
woman,  and  which  will  always  keep  her  mem- 
ory dear  to  the  hearts  of  its  members. 

Sincerely  your  friend, 

Annie  M.  Baltzer. 


Wilmington,  N.  C,  Feb.  22,  19 16. 
Irreparable  loss  has  come  to  you  and  your 
family,  which  is  felt  keenly  and  widely  through 
and  beyond  this  whole  community. 
Sincerely  your  friend, 

Cary  Davis  MacRae. 


Wilmington,  N.  C,  March  25,  191 6. 

I  have  waited  a  little  before  writing,  as  1 
know  so  well  how  overwhelmed  you  have  been 
with  expressions  of  sympathy  for  your  unut- 
terable loss  and  with  tributes  to  the  beautiful 
soul  whose  dear  companionship  has  blessed 
your  life. 

Who,  among  your  friends,  can  feel  for  you 
more  deeply  than  I?  You  knew  and  loved 
Bishop  Strange  and  I  knew  and  loved  Mrs. 

100 


Sprunt.  She  was  to  me  "a  perfect  woman 
nobly  planned,"  using  her  splendid  gifts  to 
make  better  and  happier  every  life  that  she 
touched.  Believe  me  in  great  sorrow  and 
sympathy, 

Your  friend, 

Elizabeth  S.  Strange. 


Fayetteville,  N.  C,  Feb.  26,  19 16. 

Her  life  was  so  full  of  good  and  her  exam- 
ple so  beautiful  for  all. 

Sincerely  yours, 

RoxY  Williams. 


Fayetteville,  N.  C,  Feb.  29,  19 16. 

Lula's  death  has  left  a  void  that  no  one 
can  fill.  Her  many  deeds  of  kindness  will  be 
told  to  generations  yet  to  come. 

Most  affectionately  yours, 

Kate  Williams  Bidgood. 


Fayetteville,  N.  C,  Feb.  29,  19 16. 
I  remember  Luola  with  great  affection  and 
admiration.     It  was  with  sincere  grief  that  I 
heard  of  her  death. 
Your  cousin, 

Mary  McNeil. 


lOI 


Raleigh,  N.  C,  Feb.  20,  191 6. 

A  beautiful  life  like  that  of  your  beloved 
wife  has  in  reality  just  reached  the  goal  for 
which  her  whole  life  has  been  the  preparation. 
Sincerely  yours, 

Louie  Rutledge  Feild. 


Raleigh,  N.  C,  Feb.  22,  1916. 

Your  dear  wife  has  done  so  much  for  the 
happiness  of  others,  and  in  these  good  works 
her  gentle  spirit  still  lives  to  bless  the  world. 
Your  sincere  friend, 

Alex.  J.  Feild. 


Raleigh,  N.  C,  Feb.  23,  1916. 

She  was  so  wonderfully  beautiful  in  her 
Christian  character  that  I  can  almost  hear  the 
angels  singing  to  welcome  her  home. 
Sincerely, 

Augusta  W.  F.  Andrews. 


Charlotte,  N.  C,  March  i,  19 16. 

Her  friends,  whose  name  is  legion,  are 
mourning  with  you  in  your  sorrow.  Through 
acts  of  unselfishness  and  sweet  consideration 
of  others,  your  wife  endeared  herself  to  all 

102 


who  were  privileged  to  know  her.  She  has 
left  a  permanent  influence  upon  the  community 
and  patriotic  interests. 

Faithfully  yours, 

S.  H.  Van  Landingham. 


Presbyterian  Church  of  the  Covenant. 

Greensboro,  N.  C,  Feb.  21,  1916. 

I  was  very  much  distressed  in  seeing  an 
account  of  the  death  of  your  devoted  wife. 
So  I  am  using  this  opportunity  in  letting  you 
know  that  I  sympathize  with  you  most  deeply, 
and  am.  praying  that  our  Father  will  give  you 
abundantly  of  His  grace  to  sustain  you  in  this 
hour  of  trial.  May  the  Father  of  m.ercies 
and  the  God  of  all  comfort  be  the  stay  of 
each  member  of  your  home. 

Most  sincerely  your  friend, 

R.  Murphy  Williams. 


GoLDSBORO,  N.  C,  Feb.  19,  19 16. 

I  feel  it  such  a  privilege  to  have  known 
your  wife,  who  was  such  a  tower  of  strength. 
Most  sincerely, 

Mary  J.  Arrington. 

103 


Linden,  N.  C,  Feb.  21,  19 16. 

Hers  was  such  a  noble  nature,  living  up  to 
the  "golden  rule"  in  her  every-day  life.    How 
sorely  she  will  be  missed ! 
Yours  in  sorrow, 

Cornelia  E.  Elliot. 


Belmont,  N.  C,  Feb.  26,  1916. 

A  truly  noble  Christian  woman  has  gone  to 
her  reward,  to  receive  the  "Well  done,  faith- 
ful servant,"  from  the  lips  of  the  Divine  Mas- 
ter, but  her  beautiful  example  lives  after  her. 

On  several  occasions  we  were  with  her  at 
the  bedside  of  a  mutual  friend,  and  her  gentle, 
self-sacrificing  devotion  impressed  us  as  be- 
ing a  woman  of  truly  sympathetic  character. 
Yours  in  warmest  sympathy. 

Sisters  of  Mercy, 
Sacred  Heart  Convent. 


Banners  Elk,  Avery  County, 

Feb.  29,  1916. 

I  was  very  much  grieved  to  learn  a  few 
days  since  of  the  death  of  your  beloved  wife. 
She  was  so  good  and  kind  to  me  when  I  had 
the  pleasure  of  being  in  your  home,  a  good 
many  years  ago. 

Very  sincerely,  Edgar  Tufts. 

104 


Crossnore,  N.  C,  Feb.  28,  19 16. 
I  did  not  know  Mrs.  Sprunt  personally,  but 
I  was  one  of  the  many  who  admired  her  from 
afar. 

Most  sincerely  yours, 

Mary  Martin  Sloop. 


Bethany,  N.  C,  Feb.  — ,  19 16. 
How  many  will  miss  her!     But  she  has 
gone  where  her  works  do  follow  her. 
Yours  most  sincerely, 

W.  A.  LiNEKER. 


Faisons,  N.  C. 
What  is  left  to  you?  Why,  the  meaning 
of  many  years  of  her  delightful  companion- 
ship, rich  harvest  of  good  works  thought  out 
together,  suffering  relieved,  and  gladdened 
souls  won  for  Christ.  Truly  you  two  have 
felt  the  brotherhood  of  mankind. 
Your  friend, 

Mary  Lyde  Hicks  Williams. 


New  York  City,  Feb.  18,  19 16. 
I  am  so  sorry  that  dear  Aunt  Lula  is  dead. 
She  was  such  a  nice  aunt  to  us. 
With  best  love, 
Aurelie  Murchison  (age,  7  years). 
105 


New  York  City,  Feb.  19,  1916. 

I  can  never  forget  how  kind  Mrs.  Sprunt 
and  her  family  were  to  me  in  the  years  gone 
by. 

Yours  very  sincerely, 

John  M.  Dorrance. 


New  York  City,  Feb.  21,  1916. 

It  was  a  great  privilege  to  have  been  with 
you  and  Laurence  for  a  little  while  during 
your  sorrow,  and  to  have  been  able  to  tell  you 
in  person  how  deeply  I  feel  for  you. 

I  heard  on  all  sides,  from  both  white  and 

colored  people,  about  some  kindness  they  had 

received  from  Aunt  Lula.     Lillie  and  I  have 

lost  our  best  friend  and  shall  miss  her  greatly. 

Affectionately, 

Hunter  Wood. 


New  York,  Feb.  25,  191 6. 

The  memory  of  her  life,  the  years  of  com- 
panionship, the  large-hearted,  generous  en- 
thusiasm, the  gracious  bounty,  helpfulness, 
and  hospitality,  the  worth  and  devotion  of 
her  friendships,  and  the  steadfastness  of  her 
deeper  affections — all  these  things,  while  they 
increase  the  loss  and  the  sorrow,  are  consola- 

106 


tion  and  compensation,  because  in  a  very  real 
sense  they  can  never  be  taken  from  you. 

I  have  only  spoken  of  your  loss,  but  we 
both  feel  that  we  have  lost  a  friend  who  was 
very  close  in  our  greatest  need. 

Faithfully  and  affectionately  yours, 
Peyton  H.  Hoge. 


New  York,  Jan.  30,  1916. 

I  am  deeply  distressed  at  the  news  of  Mrs. 
Sprunt's  illness.  Ever  since  I  first  knew  her 
she  has  been  my  admiration. 

Sincerely  yours, 

Emma  Maffitt. 


Brooklyn,  N.  Y.,  Feb.  26,  191 6. 

In  the  long  years  of  separation  in  my 
Northern  home,  many  beautiful  things  have 
been  told  me  of  the  tender  solicitations  your 
wife  had  for  others,  and  that  she  gave  to  her 
fellow-wayfarers  on  life's  road  the  sunshine 
of  a  happy  disposition  and  the  sv/eetness  of 
an  unselfish  love. 

To  Laurence  and  yourself  the  constant 
affection  of 

Yours  faithfully, 

John  B.  Lord. 

107 


LocKPORT,  N.  Y.,  Feb.  27,  1916. 

Wilmington  can  ill  afford  to  lose  such  a 
beautiful  and  glorious  character,  and  this  loss, 
I  am  sure,  will  be  felt  for  many  years. 
Sincerely  yours, 

Wm.  R.  Kenan,  Jr. 


Syracuse,  N.  Y.,  Feb.  26,  1916. 

It  seems  so  short  a  time  since  she  used  to 
come  with  you  so  faithfully  to  the  little  church 
in  Peace  Dale,  and  now  I  hear  that  she  has 
gone  on.  I  feel  as  if  something  more  of  the 
sweetness  and  hope  has  been  transferred  from 
this  world. 

Yours  sincerely, 

J.  W.  FOBES. 


Lawrence,  L.  I.,  Feb.  23,  19 16. 

Let  me  express  deep  and  heartfelt  sympa- 
thy for  your  loss  and  the  world's  loss  in  the 
departure  of  dear  Mrs.  Sprunt,  long  honored, 
revered,  and  beloved  by  all  who  knew  her. 
Most  sincerely, 

Philippine  Feid. 


Baltimore,  Md., ,  1916. 

It  was  hard  to  give  Lula  up;  but  what 
more  could  we  wish   for  her  than  freedom 

108 


from  suffering  and  a  happy  reunion  with  her 
parents  and  daughters? 

Most  affectionately, 

Jessie  Murchison  Carter. 


Baltimore,  Md.,  Feb.  20,  19 16. 

Mrs.  Sprunt  was  endeared  to  many  by  her 
broad  sympathy  and  by  her  kindness  and 
thoughtfulness  for  others.  Her  fortitude  in 
trouble  and  high  standard  of  right  living  and 
thinking  commanded  the  admiration  and  re- 
spect of  all.  Those  of  us  who  had  the  oppor- 
tunity of  knowing  her  loved  her  very  dearly. 

Sincerely, 

Ralph  B.  Seem. 


Baltimore,  Md.,  March  22,  1916. 
In  common  with  every  one  who  had  the 
privilege  of  knowing  your  dear  wife,  I  feel 
that  In  her  going  I,  too,  have  lost  a  friend. 
Life  to  her,  it  would  seem,  was  merely  the 
opportunity  for  doing  the  good  and  kind 
things,  and  there  are  very  many  who  are 
mourning  with  you. 
Sincerely, 

Herbert  L.  Price. 


Washington,  D.  C,  Feb.  24,  19 16. 

I  wish  we  could  express  to  you  in  some  bet- 
ter way  than  words  how  deeply  we  feel  for 

109 


you  in  your  trouble,  and  how  full  of  gratitude 
our  hearts  are  for  all  you  and  Aunt  Lula 
have  done  for  us. 

With  deepest  sympathy  and  affection, 
Your  nephew, 

James  Sprunt  Holmes. 


Washington,  D.  C,  Feb.  27,  1916. 

I  know  so  well  what  your  good  wife  has 
always  been  to  you,  what  a  wonderful  help. 
Affectionately, 

Margaret  Lippitt. 


Washington,  D.  C,  Feb.  23,  191 6. 

I  will  certainly  miss  Aunt  Luola  when  I 
come  to  Wilmington.  She  was  always  so 
sweet  and  kind  to  everybody.  Every  time  I 
practice  my  music  I  work  hard  because  she 
loved  it  so. 

With  lots  of  love, 

Margaret  Holmes. 


Washington,  D.  C,  March  4,  19 16. 
How  sad  it  made  me  to  hear  of  my  sweet 
Mrs.  Sprunt's  death,  but  God  knows  us  and 
does  everything  for  our  good,  and  so  He  must 


110 


have  wanted  to  release  her   from  pain  and 
suffering. 

Affectionately,  your  little  girl, 

Mar.  Dev.  Lippitt  (age,  12  years). 


Carnegie,  Pa.,  February — ,  191 6. 

Such  goodness  and  kindness  as  hers  will  be 
sorely  missed  in  this  world. 

Very  gratefully  yours, 

Edith  Barber  Brown. 


Seattle,  Wash.,  March  2,  19 16. 

It  is  not  to  you  alone  or  to  your  family  that 
sorrow  has  come,  but  to  the  multitude  of 
friends  Mrs.  Sprunt  had  made.  I  know  that 
it  must  be  a  great  comfort  to  you,  even  in  the 
great  sorrow  you  are  experiencing,  to  knov/ 
how  beloved  she  was  by  those  with  whom  she 
came  in  contact.  She  has  left  a  legacy  of 
character  and  good  deeds  that  time  cannot  dis- 
place. 

Sincerely  yours, 

Frank  L.  Meares. 


Granger,  Iowa,  March  3,  19 16. 

I  can  scarcely  write  for  tears — it  is  a  trib- 
ute to  the  dear  lady's  life  of  good  works. 

IsoLA  Daniel. 


Ill 


Los  Angeles,  Cal.,  Feb.  17,  191 6. 

Edith  and  I  are  much  grieved  over  Aunt 
Luola's  death.  She  was  always  very  dear  to 
us,  even  from  the  first,  when  she  came  to  us  as 
your  bride. 

With  hearts  full  of  love  and  sympathy  to 
you  and  Laurence  from  us  both, 

Devotedly, 

James  Sprunt  Hall. 


Plainfield,  N.  J.,  Feb.  21,  19 16. 

We  grieve  for  and  with  you.     Her  loss 
will  be  felt  far  outside  of  the  local  community. 
Very  sincerely  yours, 

Malcolm  McKenzie. 


Atlanta,  Ga.,  February  19,  19 16. 

I  shall  be  glad  all  my  life  that  I  have  known 
such  a  wonderful  woman  as  Aunt  Lula  was. 
Devotedly, 
Katherine  Murchison  Ellis. 


Augusta,  Ga.,  Feb.  20,  19 16. 

God  has  called  her  and  her  beautiful,  busy 
life  on  earth  is  over. 
Affectionately, 

Janie  R.  Williams. 


112 


Macon,  Ga.,  Feb.  23,  19 16. 
I  recall  with  much  pleasure  how  I  was  im- 
pressed as  a  young  man  by  the  rare  congenial- 
ity that  existed  between  you  and  your  most 
estimable  wife. 

Your  loss  and  sorrow  are  great,  but  there  is 
comfort  to  be  found  in  the  knowledge  of  the 
reward  which  she  has  received  for  the  unusu- 
ally useful  and  thoughtful  life  which  was  hers. 
I  have  frequently  recalled  how  she  found 
her  great  pleasure  in  making  others  happy. 
Yours  sincerely, 

L.  W.  Curtis. 


Charleston,  S.  C,  Feb.  17,  1916. 
''Seeing  the  King  in  His  beauty,  she  says: 
'Here,   Lord,   am   I   and  the  children  Thou 


gavest  me.'  ' 


Alexander  Sprunt. 


Mobile,  Ala.,  Feb.  24,  191 6. 

I  can  hardly  express  to  you  my  concern  and 
grief  when  I  read  the  announcement  of  your 
great  loss  in  "The  New  York  Times:' 

I  am  so  glad  I  knew  her,  even  so  briefly. 
Such  a  character  as  your  dear  wife  must  be  a 
cherished  memory  to  those  who  knew  her.     It 

113 


Is  so  rarely  that  any  one  attains  such  perfec- 
tion in  this  world.  I  cannot  believe  that  she 
lived  in  vain.  She  left  such  a  shining  exam- 
ple behind  and  took  such  a  rich  endowment  to 
the  "Great  Beyond." 

But  the  greater  her  fitness  for  the  other 
world,  the  greater  the  loss  to  those  who  loved 
her  here.  I  cannot  say  one  word  of  comfort. 
I  can  only  voice  the  deep  sympathy  of  myself 
and  daughter. 

Sincerely  your  friend, 

HORTENSE  A.  BaTRE. 


Lynchburg,  Va._,  February — ,  1916. 

From  afar  I  admired  her  for  her  manv 
kind  and  charitable  deeds,  her  efforts  to 
lighten  and  to  make  happy  hearts  bowed 
down  with  loads  of  grief  and  care,  whose  hand 
was  ever  ready  to  help  and  her  ear  to  heed 
the  cry  of  the  needy  and  the  distressed. 

Lily  Van  B.  Wiggins. 


Warrenton,  Va.,  March  27,  191 6. 

The  beautiful  life  of  her  whom  numberless 

friends  mourn,  and  whose  acts  of  charity  and 

benevolence,  like  milestones  on  the  road  of 

life,  stand  out  as  monuments  to  her  memory, 

114 


goes  on  still  to  serve  the  Creator  in  His  end- 
less work  of  the  world's  salvation. 

My  dear  friend,  my  heart  goes  out  to  you 
in  your  great  bereavement. 
Your  friend, 

Delancy  Evans. 


De  Land,  Fla.,  February — ,  191 6. 

I  wish  to  assure  you  of  my  sympathy  and  to 
add  this  word  to  the  many  which  have  been 
spoken  of  appreciation  of  Mrs.  Sprunt,  who 
has  gone  home. 

Her  life  was  so  full  of  ministries  that  her 
departure  will  be  felt  more  than  that  of  most. 
Cordially  your  friend, 

Richard  Orme  Flinn. 


Crescent  City,  Fla.,  March  12,  191 6. 

Mrs.  Sprunt  was  truly  trusting  the  saving 
power  of  God,  and  thus  the  going  to  her  was 
an  entrance  into  the  unspeakable  glory  of  the 
presence  of  her  Lord. 

Faithfully  in  Him, 

L.  S.  Chafer. 


Jackson,  Miss.,  March  20,  1916. 

My  memory  of  her  is  so  fresh,  picturing 
her  full  of  energy  and  bubbling  life.      I  want 

115 


you  to  know  that  there  is  one  here  who  has 
not  forgotten  her  kindness. 

With  love  from  Mrs.  Lancaster  and  from 
me, 

Your  sincere  friend, 

R.  V.  Lancaster. 


London,  Feb.  17,  19 16. 

I  have  received  your  cablegram  with  the 
sad  news  of  the  death  of  Luola.  We  are 
very,  very  sorry.  She  will  be  greatly  missed 
from  the  position  she  so  adorned.  I  shall 
miss  her  very  much. 

Very  affectionately  yours, 

J.  D.  Sprunt. 


Kelvinside,  Glasgow,  Scotland, 

March  i,  1916. 

Always  thinking  of  others  and  never  at  all 
of  her  own  feelings,  she  was  a  wonder  unto 
many.  Words  fail  me  to  express  my  admira- 
tion, love,  and  respect  for  her.  I  always  felt 
happy  in  her  presence.  What  a  gift  to  possess 
and  what,  a  price  one  has  to  pay  for  such  a 
talent!  She  certainly  did  not  hide  it  in  a 
napkin.  I  always  think  that  those  highly  en- 
dowed people  must  suffer  greatly;  they  feel  so 
intensely    themselves    and    recognize    others' 

116 


feelings  so  deeply  that  they  must  suffer  all  the 
time,  but  their  interludes  of   freedom   from 
care  are  so  intensely  enjoyed  that  it  must  be 
partly  made  up  to  them. 
Ever  affectionately, 

ToMiNA  Jackson. 


Kelvinside,  Glasgow,  Scotland, 

Feb.  i8,  1916. 

She  has  been  taken  from  us,  but  her  mem- 
ory lives  on.  We  have  all  been  the  better  for 
her  life,  and  it  will  be  with  a  "Well  done, 
good  and  faithful  servant,"  that  she  has  en- 
tered the  presence  of  her  Heavenly  Father. 
Yours  very  sincerely, 

Wm.  Jackson. 


HiLLHEAD,  Glasgow,  Scotland. 

Please  accept  all  my  sympathy  in  your  great 
trial.  Dear  Luola — I  am  very  glad  that  she 
passed  away  so  peacefully. 

Yours  very  affectionately  and  devotedly, 
Annie  Hedderwick. 


Scottish  Rifles,  North  Camp. 

I  had  a  great  admiration  and  respect  for 
Cousin  Luola  and  wished  often  that  my  fam- 

117 


Ily,  but  particularly  my  mother,  could  have 
seen  more  of  her. 

Affectionately  yours, 

Edwin  Hedderwick. 


Loud  WATER,  Bucks,  England, 

March  8,  1916. 

Mrs.  Sprunt  held  a  high  place  in  the  ad- 
miration and  affection  of  all  who  had  the  hap- 
piness of  knowing  her,  and  will  ever  be  asso- 
ciated with  our  choice  recollections  of  home. 

Very  sincerely  yours, 

F.  L.  PoissoN. 


Seven  Kings,  Essex,  England, 

Feb.  19,  1 91 6. 

I  shall  ever  remember  her  kind  hospitality 
and  friendship  on  each  occasion  that  I  visited 
Wilmington. 

Yours  sincerely, 

Fred.  K.  Paton. 


Oxton,  Birkenhead,  Feb.  18,  19 16. 

Mrs.  Sprunt's  wide  philanthropic  and  na- 
tional work,  which  gave  her  so  much  pleasure 
in  life,  now  becomes  a  monument,  which  must 

1x8 


sustain  and  comfort  you  In  this  hour  of  trial, 
a  noble  and  living  tribute  to  the  highest  ideals 
of  life. 

Believe  me, 

Yours  very  sincerely, 

C.  D.  Mackintosh. 


NoKOMis,  Task.,  Canada, 

Feb.  29,  191 6. 

I  always  remember  Luola's  kindness  to  me 
when  I  visited  her  at  the  sound. 
Yours  sincerely, 

Margaret  S.  Cowper. 


Le  Havre,  France,  Feb.  17,  191 6. 

It  is  doubtless  a  great  consolation  to  you 
that  she  passed  away  so  peacefully — a  fitting 
end  to  a  life  so  full  of  activity  and  of  contri- 
butions to  the  amelioration  of  the  needs  and 
suffering  of  others. 

Most  sincerely  yours, 

Tom  Orrell. 


Liverpool,  England,  Feb.  29,  191 6. 

To  Mr.  William  H.  Sprunt: 

Thank  you  for  your  cable  informing  us  of 
Mrs.  James  Sprunt's  death.     There  will  be 

119 


many  individuals  and  institutions  in  Wilming- 
ton to  whom  her  loss  will  make  a  great  differ- 
ence, for  it  seems  to  us  that  she  was  always 
busy  in  thought  and  work  for  others. 

Your  cable  as  to  the  time  of  the  funeral 
enabled  us  to  show  some  slight  regard  for  her 
memory  in  closing  this  office  on  the  afternoon 
of  the  1 8th. 

Yours  sincerely, 

W.   MiLLIGAN. 

C.  D.  Mackintosh. 


'THERE  IS  A  PEACE  THAT  COMETH  AFTER 
SORROW." 

Jessie  Rose  Gates,  in  the  April  Century. 

"There   is  a  peace  that  cometh   after   sorrow," 
Of  hope  surrendered,  not  of  hope  fulfilled; 

A  peace  that  looketh  not  upon  tomorrow, 
But  calmly  on  a  tempest  that  is  stilled. 

A  peace  which  lives  not  now  in  joy's  excesses, 
Nor  in  the  happy  life  of  love  secure; 

But  in  the  unerring  strength  the  heart  possesses 
Of  conflicts  won  while  learning  to  endure. 

A  peace  there  is  in   sacrifice  secluded; 

A  life  subdued,  from  will  and  passion  free; 
'Tis  not  the  peace  which  over  Eden  brooded, 

But   that   which   triumphed    in    Gethsemane. 

1 20 


LuOLA    MuRCHisoN— Second  daughter  of 

Colonel  Kenneth  McKenzie  and 

Katherine    Elliott    Williams 

MuRCHisoN,  was 

Born    near    Fayetteville,    North 

Carolina,    Septen-.ber    2i,    1858. 

Married   James    Sprunt   November 

27,  1883. 

Entered  into  rest  February  17,  1916. 

Children  of 
James  and  Luola  Murchison  Sprunt. 

Kate  Murchison— Born  September  20,  1884. 

Died  March  2,  1887. 
James   Laurence — Born  July  4,  1886. 

Married    Amoret    Cameron    Price 

June  I,  1912. 

Amoret    Cameron    Price    Sprunt 

died  January  5,  1915,  age  24  years. 
Marion  Murchison— Born  February  16,  1889. 

Died  August  30,  1901. 

Child  of 
James  Laurence   and  Amoret  Cameron  Price  Sprunt. 

James   Laurence— Born  January   5,   1915. 


121 


